The Best Laid Plans, Episode VI
by OpticalRacer
Summary: Soraa, Ja'Ina & their fellow pirates fled to the slavery planet Orvax only to find that money for repairs is hard to come by, and the Empire is still a threat to them. Ja'Ina, Kurloh & the Jedi Spiare plan a dangerous con on Mehar, a slaver Ja'Ina & Soraa escaped back home. But who's more dangerous, Mehar or the Empire? Set 0 BBY, OC-centric, rated T. The exciting finale episode!
1. Chapter 1

**Best Laid Plans – A Star Wars Serial Adventure**

* * *

_Author's Note: While I have created the characters and the situations, it all resides in the Star Wars Universe conceived by George Lucas._

_This story was conceived in an episodic, serial form. To read the previous episodes of this story, please go to:_

_www fanfiction net/s/8366512/1/The-Best-Laid-Plans-Episode-I _

_www fanfiction net/s/8479640/1/The-Best-Laid-Plans-Episode-II_

_www fanfiction net/s/8647198/1/The-Best-Laid-Plans-Episode-III  
_

_www fanfiction net/s/8771880/1/The-Best-Laid-Plans-Episode-IV_

_www fanfiction net/s/8904872/1/The-Best-Laid-Plans-Episode-V_

_(just need to add the missing periods, I apologize for that inconvenience)_

_This is the final episode of the story!_

* * *

**Episode VI**

The pirate ship _Queen Valkyrie_ barely escaped the pursuit of the Imperial Star Destroyer, but the pirates were forced to exit hyperspace before reaching Tatooine and crawl to safety while remaining vulnerable to attack.

Captain Berini had to land her crippled ship on the slave planet Orvax IV in order to make repairs and give the gravely-wounded, including Soraa, much needed medical care.

Soon the Empire also arrived on Orvax IV, and in a desperate attempt to obtain the money needed for repairs, Ja'Ina and Kurloh embark on a dangerous mission that will bring them face to face with the notorious slaver Mehar…

* * *

**Chapter One**

The slave markets of Orvax IV were just starting to open up in the early morning light. The auctions ran as long as there was daylight, rain or shine. Slavers were already leading their slaves to the auction platforms in anticipation of the day's profitable business.

One particular slaver could be seen leading two ragged-looking female slaves at the end of chains connected to binders that held their hands behind their backs. With the slaves in front, they walked along one of the main streets, which was still mostly void of traffic. The scraggly, middle-aged master wore a hooded cloak and the slaves were dressed in baggy utility jumpsuits. One of the females was a petite, honey brown-skinned human with waist-length black hair. The other was an orange-skinned Togruta with the characteristic curved white montrals and trio of head tails that hung down her chest and back. The females looked around in all directions, while the master silently looked straight ahead.

Kurloh saw no sign of Mehar. "Do you sense anything yet, Ina?" she whispered.

Ja'Ina answered quietly, "Nothing yet, Ku. We should probably head toward his compound. It'll be harder to run into him at the market without following him to it."

"Be quiet, slaves!" Spiaré barked from behind the young women, which startled them.

Kurloh turned and glared at the Jedi. He seemed to have too much fun with his role in their charade. Still, they couldn't risk being overheard saying anything that suggested that they were not as they appeared, so his actions weren't completely unwarranted.

Spiaré rattled their chains and Kurloh turned back to face forward. Ja'Ina glanced at the Togruta and gave her a quick, subtle grin and shrug.

Ja'Ina and Kurloh, along with their 'master' Spiaré, continued to walk along the street as traffic and business started to pick up. It was fairly quiet when they first arrived, but now the noise level of machines, animals and conversations quickly rose to fill the air. Ja'Ina continued to reach out with the Force in the hopes of picking up on Mehar's unpleasant presence.

A large reptilian Trandoshan stepped out in front of the women, who immediately stopped short. Spiaré stopped right behind them, ready to step in if necessary.

The Trandoshan spoke Basic with an unpleasantly pronounced hiss. "How much do you want for your girls? I especially like the Togruta here. You don't see many of them for sale; a rare treasure indeed!" He gestured a three-fingered claw towards a scowling Kurloh.

Spiaré stepped up to stand in between the young women and the unwanted buyer. "I assure you, more than you're willing to pay."

The Trandoshan let out a hissing chuckle. "Try me." He produced a bag of credits.

Kurloh had the thought of robbing this bothersome humanoid reptile. Spiaré sensed it and warned her through the Force. _No._ _We must stay focused on what we're here to do._ She quickly dropped her thought.

Spiaré stared into the Trandoshan's eyes and said flatly, "They're more than you can afford."

The Trandoshan stood there momentarily with a confused look on his scaly face. "Th-they're more than I can afford…"

"You'd rather spend your money on food and drink than slaves."

"I-I'd rather spend my money on food and drink than slaves…"

"We'll be on our way now."

After a moment, the Trandoshan perked back up. "Well, I'll be on my way too, then. I'm actually feeling hungry right now."

Keeping his eyes locked on the reptilian's, Spiaré slightly nodded. The Trandoshan walked away, muttering to himself.

Keeping up the ruse, Spiaré yelled at his 'slave girls' again. "Go on! Get moving!"

Ja'Ina had an easier time playing the role of a timid, submissive slave than Kurloh did. The Togruta struggled to not get annoyed. She couldn't imagine actually being a slave to anyone. She couldn't get past the fact that she found the whole practice foul and twisted.

* * *

It was finally Soraa's turn in the bacta tank. Yifu and Fenn, the other badly-wounded crewmembers, had completed their therapy and were back on board the _Queen Valkyrie_. Berini was there with Soraa, as was Rann and Juun.

Soraa was prepared to go in. She wore only a small white bikini that exposed the still-open deep lacerations and contusions that covered her body. She also had a breath mask with a microphone to speak through and a small earpiece to hear the others while submerged in the fluid. While she was happy to finally be healed once and for all, Soraa was still nervous about being put into such a helpless, defenseless position on a planet of slavery. She and Ja'Ina's encounter with Mehar back in Jum Katar still burned strongly in her memory; Soraa did not want to come that close to becoming a slave again. She would rather kill herself before she'd let someone take her as their property.

As Soraa was slowly being lowered into the tank, Rann called up to her. "Don't worry about a thing! In a little while you'll be ready to shoot the ears off a gundark!" She patted her own cybernetic leg. "Spent some time in a tank for this thing and was good-as-new after!" She gave Soraa a smiling thumbs-up.

Soraa nodded her head in response just as her chin touched the surface of the fluid. She settled into a position in the middle of the tank and the bacta started to work on her wounds immediately, which felt very strange to her. There was a tingling sensation mixed with a hint of pain and itchiness, and the temperature was slightly lower than her body's. Her ears were filled with the constant, soft low-frequency hum. Even within the breathing mask Soraa could smell the sickly-sweet odor of the fluid that enveloped her. She felt completely weightless, which she found comforting.

Berini was at the control console next to the tank. She spoke into a microphone. "Soraa, can you hear me okay?"

Soraa turned her head towards Berini. Through the console's speaker, Soraa's muffled voice could be heard. "Y-yeah, I can h-hear you." She had a hard time controlling her nervousness.

"Just breathe normally and everything will be fine."

"O-okay."

The facility was little more than a small underground room behind a shop which was owned by an acquaintance of Berini's. She had known him since her days in the Imperial Navy. He had also left the military and took up a new life on Orvax IV. He was not in the slavery business; he simply wanted to get away from Imperial influence to start a modest yet profitable business. He had obtained the bacta tank in a high-stakes dejarik game and maintained it for a secret business on the side. The subterranean room was well-reinforced with high-grade duracrete and the security system was tight.

Berini was one of only a few who knew its existence. Those few had to swear to secrecy and pay a hefty fee for use to cover the high costs of tank maintenance and the black market value of the bacta solution itself. It was believed to be the only tank on the planet, if not the entire sector.

The light that bathed Soraa from within the tank provided the majority of the lighting in the windowless room. Berini stayed at the controls monitoring the tank's systems and Soraa's vitals while Rann and Juun sat down in chairs in front of the tank.

Rann shook her pointed thumb at Berini. "Get a load of that strange-looking med-droid over there."

Juun chuckled as the Captain gave the jokester a glaring eye that could burn a hole through the duracrete walls of the room.

Through the solution, Soraa could just make out the others just outside of the tank. She was relieved to see that she really wasn't going to be left alone. She let out a relaxed sigh and settled more inside the tank. Berini could hear her patient's relief through the console speaker and saw her vitals settle into a relaxed state on the monitor. She looked up at Soraa and smiled a motherly smile.

* * *

As the market opened for the official business of the day, the platforms were surrounded by numerous beings waiting for the first slaves to go up for sale. Ja'Ina, Kurloh and Spiaré simply walked past the platforms to avoid any other encounters that could slow them down.

Without looking like it, the young women led Spiaré down the streets towards Mehar's compound. The Jedi made sure to bark out commands and pull the chains to match their changes in direction.

Two T'surr enforcers were walking down the street toward the trio, and the sight of them made Kurloh and Ja'Ina very nervous.

The hulking T'surr stared at the shackled women as they passed each other. The enforcers displayed large evil grins and chuckled with overtones of disgusting pleasure at the sight of the young 'slaves'. When the T'surr were about a dozen meters behind him, Spiaré glanced back and subtly waved his hand. Without warning, one of the T'surr stumbled and fell over as if he tripped on something. His partner guffawed and pointed at the unwitting victim of the Jedi's mischief.

Angry, and thinking his partner tripped him, the first T'surr stood up and punched the second in the center of his ugly face. The second T'surr shook it off and stood staring at the first for a moment. Then they both broke into roaring laughter and continued on their way.

Kurloh muttered to the air, voicing her annoyance at Spiaré. "I hope you're quite finished."

He responded by rattling the chains like he was ordering a pair of burdened nerfs forward.

* * *

Raelin's soothing voice sang within Soraa's mind. It had been a long time since she had seen him and the band or actually listened to his music, but the memory of his voice was forever recorded in her mind.

One of Soraa's favorite songs of his was playing in her head. But unlike the actual version of the song, she heard Raelin's voice a cappella. She focused on his voice and a strong sense of peace washed over her.

Soraa missed Raelin dearly and hoped that she'd be able to see him and the rest of the Sea of Lights again someday. She had so many stories to tell him about the adventures she and Ja'Ina have had since leaving Galathu.

Soraa opened her eyes and looked around. She was still floating within the bacta tank, but the bright light that had shone beneath her had gone dark and the fluid felt icy cold. Trying to focus her eyes through the fluid and the tank's transparent cylindrical wall, she looked for Berini, Rann and Juun. She could not see them.

An intense panic raced through Soraa's mind. She was completely vulnerable on a slave planet and didn't know what happened to her friends. She was all alone and didn't know what to do.

Soraa pushed herself through the viscous fluid up to the side of the tank to get a better view outside. There was no one visible to her in the small room. She could barely see the chairs, and the only reason she could see the tank's control console was that it was right next to the tank. The console was also dark, as if the tank's system was deactivated.

Frightened out of her mind, Soraa pushed back to the center of the tank, feeling more protected farther away from the wall. She quickly turned her head around, scanning around her with fearfully wide-open eyes.

"Rann? Juun? B-Berini?" Her voice was trapped inside her mask as the microphone was not active.

Soraa was on the verge of hyperventilating. "P-please… Anybody…" She held herself and tucked up into a ball.

Soraa felt a tug on her shoulder harness, as if someone was pulling her out of the tank. She thought that the power must have gone out and that Rann, Juun and Berini were up top working on getting her out. She felt great relief.

A hand clamped down on Soraa's shoulder and pulled her up. She tried to look up to see who it was, but couldn't make out any more than a vague outline of the person. She looked over at the hand on her shoulder. She saw the hand with its long, slender fingers tipped with suction cups wrapped all the way around her shoulder – a Rodian's hand! Soraa shrieked and struggled to break free, but it was useless. She grabbed at the hand, pulling at the fingers, but their grip only tightened as she was pulled up out of the fluid.

As Soraa's head emerged from the surface, another hand grabbed her breathing mask and ripped it off her face. She screamed and flailed at her assailant.

"Soraa! Soraa! Wake up!"

Within the tank, Soraa shuddered and regained consciousness. She screamed again.

Through her earpiece, Soraa could hear Rann's voice. "Soraa, it's okay! It's me, Rann! You're okay, you're safe!"

Soraa jerked her head over towards the console and saw Rann, Berini and Juun crowded around it. Once she realized what had happened, she relaxed. Still, she felt unease with her vulnerable position. "Let me out! Please let me out!"

Berini's soothing voice came through the earpiece. "No, my dear. You're not quite done yet. Just take it easy. Trust me, you're safe. We're not going anywhere without you."

Rann put her hand on the tank for Soraa to see. "No more sleeping for you." She smiled.

Soraa returned the smile underneath her breathing mask and placed her hand against Rann's on her side of the tank.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

* * *

As the morning progressed there was still no sight or sense of the slaver Mehar Fuhar. Ja'Ina and Kurloh kept a lookout for the Kusolan while Spiaré followed behind them, holding chains connected to the binders that held the women's arms behind their backs. They were slowly making their way towards Mehar's compound in hopes of coming upon him between the plazas and his residence.

Once the trio left the market district, the streets opened up dramatically. The plazas were more crowded and chaotic than the day before. There were clearly more T'surr enforcers patrolling the public places in response to the increased activity. In contrast, there was very little, if any, traffic on the streets outside the markets.

Ja'Ina and Kurloh led Spiaré to a spot right around the corner from Mehar's compound. After a landspeeder jetted past, Ja'Ina carefully looked out to see if anyone was at the entrance in the walls surrounding the residence. There was no sign of anyone, not even any of his Gamorreans.

Ja'Ina stretched out through the Force to try to sense the slaver's presence. She was unable to, but that didn't mean much as she was still learning how to manage that skill and had a hard time working against the distraction of her excited anticipation. She ducked back around to her companions, disappointed.

"I hope he hasn't left the planet," Ja'Ina said with a sigh. She looked at Kurloh, who shook her head.

Another landspeeder drove down the street, towards the market district. Ja'Ina felt an unpleasant ripple in the Force. She whipped her head around just in time to make out the familiar, ugly, warty grey head of a Kusolan riding in a passenger seat. He was accompanied by three Gamorreans. Dun'ii was not with him.

"There he is!" Ja'Ina yelped.

Through the Force, Spiaré reached out to touch the presence of the slaver, like a wolf sampling a scent to have something to follow.

"Whew! He's quite an unsavory fellow," the Jedi quipped. "I've got a bead on him now, so we should be able to track him down to the markets. I sense that is his desired destination."

Ja'Ina frowned. "Yeah, he's probably got more girls to sell…"

Kurloh grabbed Ja'Ina's shoulder with a reassuring smile. "Alright then, let's get down there and yank some money out of that sleemo's guts."

* * *

It took a while, but the trio made their way to the particular plaza that Mehar and his bodyguards came to. It was quite crowded so there was no visual contact with him yet. However, Spiaré still had a lock on his general location through the Force and followed it as if he had a compass that always pointed to the foul slaver.

To keep up the appearances of slaves, Ja'Ina and Kurloh kept their heads down, forgoing looking around for their target. Ja'Ina tried again to feel Mehar out through the Force and was able to sense something this time. However, the young woman's skills were not nearly as honed as the Jedi's so it was more of a vague sensation blended with the energies of the countless beings around her.

Spiaré continued to play the part of a slaver, rattling the women's chains and occasionally barking out commands. It was a fortuitous setup since it was up to him to direct them towards Mehar's position.

The three continued to make their way through the crowds and past auction platforms until Spiaré finally spied the Kusolan. He was standing in front of his guards with his hands on his hips. Puffs of acrid smoke wafted from Mehar's spice-laced cigar as he watched the auction of one of his girls.

Spiaré tugged on the chains to get Ja'Ina and Kurloh to stop. The Jedi walked up right behind them.

"Okay," he whispered, "here's what we're going to do. We'll make our way right up beside him and I'll strike up a conversation. You are to keep looking down – make it look as if you don't realize who you're standing next to."

"It'll be hard to keep my cool," Ja'Ina confessed, "but I think I can do it."

"Don't _think_ you can. _Know_ you can." Spiaré gave the young woman an assuring look.

Ja'Ina gave him an acknowledging nod and turned to look back at the ground.

Kurloh exhaled. "Hoo boy, here goes nothing." The Togruta shook her head.

The trio headed over toward Mehar and the Gamorreans, who were armed with nasty-looking vibroaxes. Mehar wore a blaster on his belt, but now it was on his left side. Presumably, he had to learn how to shoot with his left hand since he lost his right to Ja'Ina's attack several months ago.

Spiaré had pulled the chains in so that Ja'Ina and Kurloh couldn't walk more than about a meter in front of him. They stepped right up beside the Kusolan and his bodyguards.

The Jedi turned his head to look at Mehar, who seemed to be ignoring him. Spiaré looked around and then looked toward Mehar again.

"Uhh, excuse me my good fellow," Spiaré blurted at the Kusolan. "How do I put my slaves up for sale around here?"

Two of the Gamorreans stepped over to stand in between Spiaré and Mehar. They didn't raise their vibroaxes, but they did grunt warnings at the Jedi. He simply smiled at them and pulled back his cloak to reveal the blaster on his hip.

Mehar snorted. "It's okay, back off boys. It was just a question." He kept his attention on the auction, following the rising price of his 'merchandise'. "You gotta take 'em to the pens for pre-sale holding. There you'll also have-"

Mehar had glanced over at Spiaré's 'slaves' and narrowed one orange eye as he spied the honey brown-skinned human female with urgent familiarity.

He stepped toward Ja'Ina, who continued to look down at her feet. "Haven't we met before, my dear?"

Ja'Ina didn't answer or make any kind of motion of response. She just continued to stare down at her feet.

Mehar stepped right up in front of the young woman and took her by the chin. He lifted her head to see, and then stepped back with shock. "You!"

Ja'Ina continued to remain silent, but Kurloh softly growled, knowing that their plans for Mehar were now in motion and there was no going back.

Mehar snorted, a sense of pleasure was in his voice. "I never forget a face…" He lifted his mechanical claw right up in front of Ja'Ina's face. The three long, sharp metal fingers looked even more unpleasant up close.

The Kusolan's eyes pointed skyward for a moment as he searched through his memory. "…Ahh, yes! Your name is…" He looked back at the young woman and menacingly flexed his claw right in front of her face. "…_Ja'Ina_, isn't it?"

The time had come for Ja'Ina to play the role of the timid slave girl. She hoped that she would be a good enough actress to fool the slaver. She looked directly at him with a wide-eyed expression of surprise. "M-Mehar…"

Mehar let out a snorting laugh. "Yessss! You remember me too! I'm _honored_!"

Spiaré stepped up his act in the charade. He grabbed Ja'Ina's shoulder and forcefully turned her to face him. "Wait a minute! You know him?"

Ja'Ina nodded quickly. "Yes, Master. I've met him before, back on my homeworld."

Mehar looked over at the Jedi. "Yes, I know your girl. It's been a while though! Tell me, how did you get her?"

Spiaré rattled Ja'Ina's chain, and she turned around to face Mehar again. "I found her and her Togruta friend here stowing away on my ship. They snuck on board some time while I was stopped on Corellia last week."

Kurloh stood still in her place, silently watching the entire exchange. She kept herself tuned through the Force to get as much information about the slaver as possible; his motives, his disposition, his thought processes. That knowledge could be of use to the young women later. He was fairly weak-minded, so even with her self-taught skills she could read him like a cheap holonovel. She could tell that Mehar was playing into their plans as expected.

Spiaré continued his concocted story. "My first thought was to space 'em. But then I figured I could make some money off these girls for my troubles. So here I am!"

Mehar leaned in close to Ja'Ina, his orange eyes locked onto her dark brown eyes. His face was so close to hers that she could smell his foul breath. "Tell me, my dear, what happened to your friend on Galathu?"

Ja'Ina quickly glanced at Kurloh and then contemptuously looked Mehar straight back in the eyes. "After we escaped, she decided that she wanted no more adventures and returned home where it was safe."

Mehar straightened back up and let out a loud, snorting belly laugh. "Awww, poor girl! I scared her back to her mommy and daddy! Well, I'm sure she's having fun with the Imperials back home."

Kurloh growled more audibly this time, in response to the slaver's snide remark. He looked at her and smiled.

"And what do you have here," Mehar addressed Spiaré, "A Togruta girl? And a fine-looking one at that! I haven't seen very many in my circles. No, definitely not many."

Spiaré cleared his throat and bowed slightly to Mehar. "Well, if you excuse me, I'll be taking my girls to the pens for sale, if you could kindly point me in the right direction."

The Kusolan snorted loudly. "Hold on a second, my good human! I can do something better than that for you. Come with me."

Spiaré adopted a suspecting tone. "What are you talking about?" He pulled Ja'Ina and Kurloh back right up next to him.

"Oh, come now! I assure you that I'm not here to rob you." Mehar took another puff on his spice cigar. "Orvax is a place of business, not of thievery."

Spiaré could sense that the slaver was telling the truth about his intentions. The Jedi was pleased that Mehar took the bait.

"Okay, then… Mehar, is it? Let's go talk."

Mehar walked over to Spiaré and patted him on shoulder. "Atta boy!"


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

* * *

With her treatment in the bacta tank complete, Soraa was brought back out. When she was done freshening up, Soraa emerged from the changing room wearing a tunic and pants that hung loosely on her thin form. Her still-wet copper-brown hair was slicked straight back over her head. Soraa was a bit unsteady on her feet, due to spending much of the day weightless in the tank.

Rann helped Soraa walk over to sit on a chair. "Don't worry, you'll get used to being on your feet again in a little while."

"How are you feeling?" Berini asked her patient.

Soraa looked up at the Captain. "I feel better; a little wobbly, but okay. Thanks."

"Good! We'll rest for a moment before heading back to the ship." Berini pulled out her comlink. "Berini to _Queen Valkyrie_, come in."

After several seconds of soft static, a response came over the comlink. "Gartia here, Captain. How's your patient?"

"Good to go. We'll be leaving shortly. How's progress on the ship?"

"Slow, Captain. The engines are about fifty-percent restored. We're still having difficulties procuring parts."

"Blast it," Berini muttered. "Do we have parties out to get materiel and funds?"

"Yes, Captain. We did have a big boost in finances yesterday, thanks to Deoni."

"Good! Good! I knew her thieving skills would be handy. Where is she now?"

"Out to get more. But Captain… She killed someone for their credits."

Berini sighed. "I was afraid that might happen. But it's a risk with what we're trying to accomplish. I hate to say it, but we may need to step up our methods a notch."

Shocked, Juun stood up and blurted out, "Captain!" Berini had never suggested such actions before.

Berini looked angrily at the young woman and forcefully waved at her to sit back down. Juun silently complied and Berini turned her attention back to the comlink.

"Still," Berini continued, "we don't want to attract any more attention than is necessary. With the Imps nearby, we don't want them coming this way before we're off-world."

"My Queen, there's something else you should know. The Jedi has left the ship along with Ja'Ina and Kurloh."

Berini grimaced as if in pain. "Sithspit! Just what the hell is he trying to do?!"

"I don't know, Captain. Hopefully he's got a good plan in mind."

Soraa smiled to herself. The three Force-sensitives were out together hatching some scheme to earn more credits so the pirates could leave this despicable planet. She was not worried one bit; in fact she was excited for them. Surely they had something planned that was sure to succeed. She had to hold her tongue, however, since she was the only one who knew Ja'Ina and Kurloh's secret.

Berini was anything but pleased to hear the news. "Well, I hope Spiaré doesn't bring any more trouble our way. If someone realizes that a Jedi is freely walking around out there, he'll become a very valuable target for bounty hunters _and_ the Empire. And I don't want any of my girls caught in unnecessary danger because of his foolishness!"

Berini stood silent for a few moments, deep in thought. She shook her head. "Let's just hope that everything will work out okay. I don't care what happens to that mynock-brained Jedi, but I'm worried about Ja'Ina and Kurloh. We might have to send out a search party for them if we don't hear anything."

Gartia interjected. "But Captain, you yourself said that if anyone got themselves into trouble that they were on their own!"

Soraa couldn't believe that Berini would adopt such a policy about her crew, especially Ja'Ina. "Captain, you didn't say that, did you?!"

"Gartia's right, Soraa," said Berini, who put her hand on Soraa's shoulder. "Even if we wanted to, we don't have the resources to orchestrate a rescue right now. Besides, we don't know if anything's even happened. We shouldn't get caught up in 'what-ifs' when it's not warranted."

Soraa grabbed Berini's arm. "But if they do get into trouble, it wouldn't be Ina and Ku's fault!"

"I beg to differ, my dear. They chose to go out with him, even knowing the risks of being with a Jedi."

Soraa sighed and slumped down in her chair, her face darkened with concern for her friends. Rann and Juun comforted her.

"Thanks for the update, Gartia. We'll be heading back to the ship now. Berini out." With that, Berini deactivated the comlink and returned it to her utility belt.

Berini knelt down in front of Soraa. "Don't trouble yourself about their well-being. I'm sure they're doing just fine and will be back in time for dinner."

Soraa looked at the Captain and nodded in reply.

* * *

Mehar had led Spiaré, Kurloh and Ja'Ina to a tavern that he frequently patronized whenever he was on Orvax IV. It was a popular tavern, constantly full of beings of all kinds and Spiaré and Ja'Ina were the only humans present. On one side of the tavern, there was a droid DJ playing a mix of popular music from many star systems. The Twi'lek waitresses were dressed in skimpy outfits that clearly indicated they were slaves rather than employees.

There was a special booth in the back of the establishment that Mehar always got, which afforded him both privacy and a clear view of the rest of the place. The slaver and Jedi sat on opposing sides of the booth's table. Spiaré called himself 'Cor-Fii' as part of the deception. Ja'Ina and Kurloh stood next to the booth, facing the table. Spiaré still held the chains connected to the women's binders. Mehar's three Gamorreans sat at the bar, drinking especially-disgusting potables.

"So now then, Mister Cor-Fii… How much were you thinking of asking for your girls?"

Spiaré cleared his throat and sat up. "Well Mehar, I hadn't thought much about it. I figured I didn't have much control over the price since they were going to be auctioned."

Mehar rubbed his wide, upturned nose. "Hmmm, well what kind of opening price were you thinking of?"

"I'd rather not say. What are you getting at?"

Mehar laughed. "Getting straight to business, Mister Cor-Fii! I'd like to buy Ja'Ina here. You see, she owes me big time. Back on Galathu she killed a number of my security personnel and took my hand away from me." The slaver displayed the three-fingered mechanical claw where his right hand used to be.

Spiaré whistled in amazement. He turned to Ja'Ina. "You did that?" Of course he really already knew what Ja'Ina had done and was just playing his part in the deception.

Ja'Ina continued to play her role. She softly spoke, "Yes Master."

Mehar reached over and tugged on Ja'Ina's baggy jumpsuit. "Were you really planning on selling them dressed like this? I assure you, you'd get a lot more money if prospective buyers could see much more of the girls' bodies." He smiled perversely at the young woman, who who could barely hide her expression of disgust.

Kurloh rolled her eyes at the slaver's nasty comment but said nothing.

Mehar sat back in the seat. "Well now, however she's dressed I am willing to pay you more for her than you would be able to get at auction." He narrowed his orange eyes. "I'm dead serious!"

"What would you do with her?" Spiaré asked.

Ja'Ina wondered that herself, and she broke out in a cold sweat. But she was glad that she wouldn't stay with Mehar long enough to find out.

"My good Mister Cor-Fii, you shouldn't trouble yourself with such details. Once I own her, I can do whatever I damn well want with her!"

Spiaré backed off. Mehar's answer gave him all the information he needed for the scam. The slaver was more than eager to have Ja'Ina and the Jedi could play off that. "You're right, of course. I apologize if I offended you."

"I'll let this one slide. I figured slavery was not your usual business – just don't do it again!"

The Jedi bowed his head. "I appreciate your understanding." He paused for a moment before speaking, to give the appearance of serious thought. "Now as for the price, I'd say fifty-thousand."

Mehar simultaneously choked and snorted. "Fifty-thousand?! No slave is worth _that_ much!"

"Oh, I see. It sounded like you _really_ wanted her. But I guess I was wrong." Spiaré started to stand up to leave.

Mehar excitedly waved his hand in the air. "Wait! Wait! Let's talk about this."

Spiaré looked at Mehar and kept his eyes locked with the slaver's as he slowly sat back down.

Mehar relaxed. "That's better. Don't let my reaction deter you; I really do want the girl. But really, do you think she'd be worth that much?"

Spiaré played his next card. "Well, for one thing I know for a fact she's a _very good_ dancer. One thing I do know that is a valuable quality in a pretty slave girl." He smiled smugly.

The Jedi sensed that Mehar was upset that he knew that Ja'Ina could dance. It would be harder for the Kusolan to convince him that she was worth much less than he was asking.

Mehar kept a straight face and took another puff from his spice cigar. "You have a good point there, Cor-Fii. Okay, I'll give you thirty-five. I'm being generous here only because of her personal debt to me. You would not get nearly that much out there, I guarantee that!" He shot a thumb out the front door.

Spiaré sat back with his arms crossed and audibly exhaled. "Mehar, you're being as stubborn as a bantha in heat. Between your personal interest and her marketable talents, she is clearly very valuable to you." The Jedi locked his eyes on the slaver's and slightly waved his hand from underneath his crossed arms. "Fifty is a perfectly reasonable price."

Mehar looked at him for a moment. His orange eyes looked somewhat vacant. "Yeah, fifty is a perfectly reasonable price…" After a brief pause, he then jerked his head. "…For _both_ girls."

Spiaré realized he played his mind trick a bit too subtly, so it didn't completely work on Mehar like he wanted. However, the Jedi rolled with it. "I'm glad you'd consider taking both girls as a package deal. But you yourself said that a Togruta slave girl was a _very_ rare find."

Mehar frowned and let out a snorting grunt. "I suppose I did."

"Alright, I'll cut you a deal-"

"Mister Cor-Fii, you insult me!" Mehar responded with a harsh snort.

Spiaré held his open hand out in front of him. "Hold on. Let me finish." He waited until the slaver calmed down a little. "You said you'd pay thirty-five for Ja'Ina. I'll accept that if you also pay twenty-five for the Togruta here too."

The Kusolan grumbled and furrowed his bumpy grey brow. "You know, this could be considered hyperspace lane robbery…" After a few moments of staring at Ja'Ina and Kurloh, he offered his fat hand to the Jedi to shake. "You've got a deal. Sixty-thousand galactic standard credits for both girls."

Spiaré accepted the slaver's hand. "Excellent! I think you'll find Kurloh to be a fine catch as well."

"I'm not as interested in her, but I agree it's special to have a Togruta slave!"

Kurloh could sense that Mehar disgustingly saw her as some kind of trophy for display, but she was more concerned for Ja'Ina's well-being. His mind reeked of revenge and malice for the young woman after what she did to him. Kurloh was happy that the deception was almost over. She growled at the Kusolan and he simply smiled back.

Mehar shouted over to his Gamorreans sitting at the bar. "Get over here! We're leaving!"

The three Gamorreans quickly slugged the rest of their drinks and lumbered over to Mehar's booth.

"Take my new girls here, we're going home!" Mehar handed Spiaré the money as the Jedi handed the chains to one of the Gamorreans.

Ja'Ina began to play up her role even more. "No, Cor-Fii! Please, don't let him take me! I could've been a valuable crewmate!"

Kurloh scowled, "Forget it, Ina! This sleemo is no better than that fat, nasty Kusolan!"

Mehar guffawed. "Well, my dear Togruta, it looks like you'll need some training in respect for your master!"

Kurloh spat at Spiaré and Mehar. The Jedi showed no reaction and the slaver laughed again.

Ja'Ina and Kurloh each had one Gamorrean shove them from behind while the third held the chains. The young women were forcefully led out of the establishment and they made a commotion to continue playing up their roles. Patrons around them all watched, but did nothing. This sort of scene was all too common and perfectly acceptable here.

Mehar stood up and Spiaré followed suit. "No, no Mister Cor-Fii. Please stay as my guest and have whatever you'd like, on me."

Spiaré shook the Kusolan's hand again. "Thank you for your hospitality, Mehar."

"No, no, thank you for your business!" Mehar stuffed his spice cigar back in his mouth and left the booth.

The Jedi sat back down and took a drink. _Don't worry girls, it'll all be over soon and we'll be home again._

Spiaré sat quietly alone in the booth for a few more minutes before leaving the tavern unnoticed.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

* * *

Speeding back to his compound, Mehar was at the controls of the landspeeder while his newest prizes, Ja'Ina and Kurloh, were crammed in between the slaver and his Gamorrean thugs.

The Kusolan couldn't believe his good fortune. To have actually found and now own the very person who robbed him of his right hand was too good to be true. Owning a Togruta was also an unexpected treat. There were very few enslaved Togruta in the galaxy, and Mehar managed to acquire a young adult female in good condition, which was even more special. His only problem was deciding exactly what he would do with his lovely catches.

Kurloh and Ja'Ina were tightly jammed in the middle of the speeder with their captors all around them. The unpleasant smell of the bodily odors from the slaver and his guards filled the pirates' noses, making them feel nauseous.

Once the speeder left the market district and entered the back streets towards Mehar's compound, Ja'Ina and Kurloh readied themselves for their getaway. They looked at each other and slightly nodded. Secretly and carefully they worked on their binders, picking the locks.

After a few moments the pirates' hands were free, but they kept them behind their backs to keep up the appearance of restraint. The women nodded to each other one more time. Without warning they Force leapt high into the air, much to the astonishment of their captors.

Ja'Ina and Kurloh landed on all fours on the street behind the landspeeder as it slowed to engage in pursuit. The pirates took off down a side street, running as fast as they could. They needed to lose Mehar and meet up with Spiaré, who would be waiting for them not too far away.

To increase their speed and dexterity, the pirates shed their bulky jumpsuits and heavy boots down to their regular pirate garb as they ran. Ja'Ina was armed with her dagger and Kurloh with her small blaster. The landspeeder rounded the corner behind the women and Mehar could be heard yelling over the sound of the revving engines.

"Come back here!" the slaver cried out.

As the speeder came up behind Kurloh and Ja'Ina, the Gamorreans began firing blasters at them. Between their Force-augmented reflexes and the poor marksmanship of Mehar's guards, the young women had no problems avoiding the blasts. However, the speeder was quickly gaining on them.

Kurloh looked back at their pursuers. "Ina, it's time to go up!"

Ja'Ina replied, "Yup!"

With that, the women quickly Force jumped up the side of one of the buildings. They were careful not make their maneuver too extraordinary so as to not reveal their unique abilities.

Mehar stopped his landspeeder right beneath the women and his guards continued their haphazard shooting. This time, Ja'Ina and Kurloh had to be more cautious as to not fall as they continued up the side of the building. They reached the top and made a run across the roof towards their meeting point with Spiaré.

Over the speeder's comlink, Mehar yelled. "Code Alpha-Red! Two runaways!" That was the standard broadcast message used to alert T'surr enforcers to hunt down and subdue escaped slaves.

Within moments, two enforcers flying small airspeeders swooped down on the pirates. They strafed the women as they sped past them. Ja'Ina and Kurloh both dropped prone as the enforcers flew overhead. They then scrambled back to their feet and split up to increase their chances for escape.

Kurloh called out, "See you back at the rendezvous point!"

Ja'Ina shot a quick glance back at the Togruta. "Gotcha!"

The enforcers also split up, each one persuing a pirate.

_I gotta get off this roof_, Ja'Ina thought to herself. She jumped down into a narrow alley between two buildings and crouched down on the ground, waiting for a moment to see what her pursuer would do. She saw no sign of the enforcer.

Ja'Ina took off down the alleyway, keeping her Force senses aimed above her. She felt nothing from that direction; it appeared that the T'surr had given up the chase. Ja'Ina got to the end of the alley, which opened up to a street that would leave her exposed to an easy attack.

Ja'Ina stopped to catch her breath. She figured it might take some work to get away, but this was more than she bargained for. Her thoughts turned toward Kurloh. Hopefully she had shaken her pursuer as well. Ja'Ina wasn't able to sense anything about her friend's well-being at the moment, but she figured it was she herself was too caught up in her own chase to properly focus her awareness of Kurloh through the living Force.

Cautiously, Ja'Ina stepped out into the street. She quickly scanned both directions and saw no sign of any enforcers, only typical traffic. Trying to act as if nothing was wrong, Ja'Ina walked away towards the location she and Kurloh were to meet Spiaré.

Several minutes went by without incident so Ja'Ina felt certain that she successfully escaped Mehar. She breathed a sigh of relief as she continued walking amongst all the other beings traveling up and down the street.

Just then, Ja'Ina's Force-augmented senses fired a sharp warning of danger. She kept walking, but scanned her surroundings to see what it could be. She then saw what had triggered her alarm and her blood ran cold. A squad of several Imperial Stormtroopers was standing on the opposite side of the street from Ja'Ina. She heard one of their voices call out through the speaker in his helmet.

"You there, stop!"

Ja'Ina did not acknowledge the Stormtroopers' presence and continued walking, pretending to not hear the command.

"I said, you, woman! Stop where you are!" The troopers began pushing through the moving crowd towards her. "Stop right now!"

Ja'Ina picked up her stride and the troopers did the same. At that point she realized that the T'surr enforcer had backed off his chase too quickly. It became obvious to her that the Imperials had taken over the hunt. Many questions of why and how raced through Ja'Ina's mind, but she pushed them aside to keep focused on her current situation.

The troopers picked up their pace as they made their way towards Ja'Ina, their blasters raised. "Get her!"

Ja'Ina panicked and started running, pushing her way through the crowd. The Stormtroopers followed suit. People were more than eager to get clear of the imposing Imperial soldiers' path whereas the petite woman had to push hard to get through. Sounds from the crowd around her picked up at the disturbance.

The young woman could just hear one of the troopers over the din. "Set for stun!"

Reflexively, Ja'Ina sprang forward into the air to land on the shoulders of a hammer-headed Ithorian then sprang ahead to another being's head, both of whom cursed at her in their native tongues. In spite of the unsteadiness of her unwitting landing points, she was able to keep her balance as she tried to lose the Stormtroopers.

Unfortunately, Ja'Ina's desperate method to outrace the troopers was her downfall. Her position opened her up to the Stormtroopers' line of sight, and they took advantage of her exposure and fired their blaster rifles. She managed to dodge the first few shots as she increased her lead, but there were just too many. One stun blast hit Ja'Ina in the small of her bare back and she tumbled down to the street below. The crowd backed away from the young woman as she lay sprawled out barely conscious on the street's surface.

The Stormtroopers trotted up to Ja'Ina and put her hands in binders. They forcefully pulled her up by her shoulders. She was covered in dust and dirt from the street where she landed. The troopers confiscated the dagger strapped to her thigh and dragged her away.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

* * *

Now prisoners of the Kusolan slaver Mehar, Ja'Ina and Kurloh sat side-by-side on the large, comfortable bed. Contradictory to their unpleasant situation, the two pirates were in a rather pleasant-looking room with sparse, but nice-looking décor. The room was brightly lit, but had no windows. The door to the room was reinforced and tightly locked, and there was nothing in the room that could be utilized as an implement of escape. Like Ja'Ina, Kurloh had also been apprehended by Imperial troops after they split up.

The two pirates were now dressed in identical slave costumes, courtesy of their new master. The costume was a clingy leotard, completely sheer except for three small, strategically-placed ornamental patches of liquid silver material. The leotard was finished off with an attached long, flowing silver skirt that was completely open in the front. The outfit was completed with bangles and ankle bracelets.

"Well, we're now _guests_ of that slime-worm," Kurloh said with disgust. "But I suppose this is better than the slave pens at the market."

Ja'Ina hunched over with a sigh. "I'm not so sure about that." She pointed to the base of her skull.

Kurloh was puzzled. "What're you talking about?"

"Our _leashes_," Ja'Ina dejectedly replied.

"Huh?"

"I mean the devices that Mehar implanted in us, which he can activate if he wants to kill us."

Kurloh shook her head. "It's unbelievable that a sentient being would do this to another."

"Well, he owns us now. He can do whatever he wants with us."

"Hey, at least we don't have to wear any heavy collars or anything like that!"

Ja'Ina shot a dissatisfied frown at her friend. She knew the Togruta was trying to look at the bright side of things, but she just wasn't in the mood for it.

Kurloh rubbed the back of her own neck. "So we have to _behave_ or that's all she wrote..."

Ja'Ina started to cry. Kurloh hugged her distraught friend.

"It's okay, Ina. We'll get outta this."

"It's not that. I'm just sorry that I got you into this…"

"Why? You know good and well that I wouldn't let you go alone. We gotta stick together if we're going to get out of this mess."

"I know what Mehar's capable of. He really only wanted me. But now I dragged you into it."

"You didn't _drag_ me. I came willingly." Kurloh smiled. "Let's just take it easy for now and see what we can do."

Ja'Ina composed herself. "You're right Ku." She turned and sat on the edge of the bed. "But I'm worried that we were caught by Imperial troopers."

The Togruta nodded. "Yeah, me too. This is disturbing, Ina. There shouldn't be any Imps around here unless something specifically drew them here. I just hope the others are okay."

* * *

Soraa, Berini, Rann and Juun made their way back to the _Queen Valkyrie_, but not without concern. Along the way, they passed by a couple of squads of Imperial Stormtroopers patrolling the streets. The pirates did their best to blend in with the rest of the traffic and luckily they didn't attract any unwanted attention.

As soon as Berini pulled the speeder back up into the _Valkyrie_'s ventral bay, she closed the ramp. Myrrna was waiting there for the Captain and her party to return.

Before the speeder's engines fully wound down, Berini jumped out. "What's our status, Myrrna?"

The cross Twi'lek shook her head. "It could be a lot better, Captain."

"I know; I was told we still have quite a few repairs left. Have Ja'Ina, Kurloh and Spiaré returned yet?"

"They haven't, nor have they reported in. They left without my knowledge or permission, so I have no idea what they're up to."

Soraa interjected. "I'm sure they're doing just fine and will be back with more spoils!"

Myrrna raised a contemptuous eyebrow at the young woman. "How can _you_ be so sure?"

"Well, I know Ina better than anyone else. She's a very capable person."

Berini put her hand on the young woman's shoulder. "I'm sure she is, but the wild card here is Spiaré. If that fool gets my girls into trouble, there'll be hell to pay."

Myrrna punched her fist into her open hand. "Force or no Force, I'll tear him apart!"

"Take it easy, Myrrna," Rann said calmly with a smirk. "No need for your typical incivility."

The Twi'lek whipped her head to face Rann, fiery anger flashed in her eyes. "Shut up or you'll be first, _'borg_!" Myrrna still harbored anger with Rann's earlier insubordination, and she knew that reminding her of her mechanical leg was an especially sore button to push.

Berini's voice boomed. "That's enough, Myrrna!" With that, the Twi'lek backed down and the Captain continued. "Where's Deoni?"

Myrrna's agitation didn't let up. Her lack of control over the situation frustrated her. "I don't know! She's been gone most of the day, but she did report in via comlink a few hours ago."

Berini proudly smiled. "I'm sure our master thief is gathering a nice haul as we speak."

At that moment, Fitty came rolling up to the women as fast as he could. He was squealing and blatting urgently with his orange-trimmed domed head wildly spinning.

Soraa intercepted the upset astromech. "Whoa, whoa there little guy! What's going on?"

The droid continued with his electronic tirade and zipped back towards the _Lucky Star_. The pirates followed him to the fighter to find the Y-Wing's cockpit canopy open. Fitty stopped right next to the ship and frantically rocked towards the cockpit, accentuating his movements with loud squawks.

Soraa scratched her head for a moment then she realized what the little droid wanted her to do. She climbed aboard and looked inside the cockpit. Shocked, she pulled out Ja'Ina's sheathed scimitar. The others were equally shocked.

Rann was the first to blurt out, "What the karking hell!"

Soraa made her way back down to the deck, her face distorted with worry. "I don't get it. This can't be good."

"No it's not," Berini groaned. "I specifically ordered that _no one_ was to leave without arms. It's stupid and dangerous in this place not to."

Soraa held the scimitar out in front of her. "But why? Why would Ina go without her sword?" For the first time in her life, Soraa feared for Ja'Ina's life. It didn't matter that Spiaré and Kurloh were with her.

Myrrna growled. "It's that damn Jedi! I'm sure it's because of him! I'll kill him!"

"Now is not the time!" Berini barked at her first officer.

"What about Kurloh?" Rann asked. "Did she leave without taking her blaster?"

"My guess is yes," Berini replied. "I can't believe this is happening. Myrrna, is anyone else still out?"

"Marka and Teedai are still out on speeder bikes. Deoni went out alone. A couple of others are still out on foot here in the capital city, but they have reported the presence of Imperial Stormtroopers."

"Yeah, we saw some too," said Juun, who had remained quiet thus far. "Why are they here, Captain?"

Berini rubbed her forehead in an attempt to ward off the impending headache. "I'm not sure, my dear. They might have tracked us, but if that were the case, they would have intercepted us before we even made planetfall. Either way, they're going to make life more difficult for us until we get out of this hellhole."

Soraa was distraught. "Captain! We gotta go and find Ja'Ina and Kurloh!"

Berini rubbed her eyes and shook her head. "No! Not yet." She wearily sighed. "I'm calling a general crew meeting. Be in the common room in one hour!" She turned and briskly walked away before anyone could say anything in reply.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

* * *

Ja'Ina and Kurloh were startled by the sudden opening of the door to their room. In stepped two Gamorreans armed with force pikes.

Sitting with Ja'Ina on the bed, Kurloh leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Perfect! There're only two of them. We can take 'em!"

Ja'Ina snapped back in a similarly hushed tone. "No, not yet. We can't blindly rush into things. We must be patient and see what we're up against first." The young woman reflexively rubbed the back of her neck, reminded of the control device implanted therein.

The large porcine brutes lumbered into the room. Kurloh and Ja'Ina stood up before the guards had a chance to yank them off the bed and they went compliantly with the Gamorreans.

As they walked down the hall, the silvery half-skirts of the pirates' slave outfits fluttered gracefully behind them. The material was very light and lustrous. Mehar neglected to give the women any footwear and the stone-tiled floor felt cold to their bare feet. Their bangles jingled with the swinging of their arms.

The Gamorreans escorted the women to Mehar's office, which was situated several levels up. The women's room was actually on an underground sub-level for added security.

When they arrived at Mehar's office, Ja'Ina and Kurloh found the Kusolan sitting behind a large desk strewn with data pads and text flimsies. He was in the middle of a conversation on a tabletop comlink. The Rutian Twi'lek Dun'ii sat off to Mehar's right reading a holobook. A bank of security holomonitors filled the wall to his left. There was a large window in the wall behind the desk.

Mehar noticed the new arrivals and cut his call short. "Ah yes, come in!" He was visibly pleased to see his new 'acquisitions' again, this time in their slave outfits.

The guards stood at attention behind the women with their force pikes pointed up.

"You may go," Mehar commanded the Gamorreans.

With a grunt the guards bowed and left the room, leaving Kurloh and Ja'Ina alone with Mehar and Dun'ii. The Twi'lek put her holobook down and silently looked up at the pirates with a neutral expression on her face. Ja'Ina sensed that she was restraining herself, likely under command from Mehar. Dun'ii held almost as much contempt for the young woman as Mehar did, because of the wound Ja'Ina had given her.

The slaver stood up and walked up to the pirates. "Well, my dear girls, how do you like your new accommodations? Your new clothes?"

Mehar salaciously scanned the women head to toe. He appreciated girls who were not light in complexion. Ja'Ina's honey-brown and Kurloh's orange with white lines appealed very much to his tastes, and their outfits displayed much of their skin.

Ja'Ina blocked Mehar's unpleasant sensations from her mind. "Very well, thank you," she answered, her voice drenched in sarcasm.

The fat Kusolan chuckled. "Good! Good!" Either he didn't notice her tone or didn't care. "I designed your outfits myself!"

Kurloh added her own dose of sarcasm. "You have a talent for fashion." She pointed at Dun'ii. "Did you design her clothes too?"

The Twi'lek was still wearing the same silver sport top and hot pants combination as before. She was barefoot like the others.

"Yes I did," Mehar proudly claimed. "How could you tell?"

Kurloh gave him a sour smile. "It appears you have quite the penchant for silver."

Mehar laughed again. "Now that you mention it, I guess I do!" His expression changed to a calm seriousness. "Now then, here we are. Ja'Ina, it is _good_ to see you again." He stepped up right in front of the young woman and flexed his mechanical claw.

Ja'Ina didn't answer, but she broke into a cold sweat as she stood stone-still. She knew how the slaver felt about her, and now that she was his prisoner she was at the mercy of his depraved whims. And that scared her to death.

Mehar slowly ran the sharp tip of one of the metal fingers down Ja'Ina's cheek, barely touching her skin. "Of all the beings…in all this vast galaxy…I never thought I'd see _you_ again. And luck against luck, you're _all mine_ as well."

Kurloh's attitude fired up again and she couldn't keep it in. "What's your point, you slimy bog rat?!"

Mehar didn't even look at the Togruta. He simply actuated a controller hidden on his person, which activated the device in her neck. Instantly, Kurloh's back arched and she screamed, falling forward to the floor.

Ja'Ina cried out, "Kurloh!" She quickly knelt down and turned her friend over. The young woman realized that she was still alive, just unconscious.

She scowled at the Kusolan. "You son of a-"

"Ah ah ah. I'd stop right there if I were you," Mehar said, wagging a fat finger. "…Or you'll feel what it's like as well."

Kurloh softly moaned as she started to regain consciousness.

Ja'Ina looked Kurloh in the face and gently stroked one of her head tails. "Thank the Force you're still alive," she whispered.

Mehar let out a loud, disgusting snort. "Of course she's still alive! You think I'd destroy such a rare, lovely prize so quickly?"

Ja'Ina bitterly frowned at her master. "So these implants aren't lethal?"

"Oh, believe me my dear girl, they are when they're on the proper setting. I just gave her a _gentle_ reminder of who's in charge."

"Do all of your girls have these cursed things?" Ja'Ina glanced at Dun'ii.

The slaver picked up on Ja'Ina's glance and smiled. "Of course they do, my dear. It's just that some don't need as frequent or intense a reminder as others do."

Ja'Ina could feel the shame stirring in Dun'ii's being. "I thought she was your partner!"

"I guess you could say she's my partner, in a sense. You see, she's been such a good girl that I don't have to confine her, and in return she helps me with my business. You remember, don't you?"

"Yeah, she's your _talent recruiter_, like Tira was…" Ja'Ina's voice trailed off, tinged with the pain of the memory of Tira's demise several months earlier.

Mehar was visibly pleased. "You remember Tira. Isn't that nice?"

Anger began to well up inside Ja'Ina again, but she composed herself and calmed back down. Kurloh stirred in her arms.

Dun'ii stood up and walked over to Ja'Ina, her shiny attire accentuating her strut. Hatred radiated from her face as she locked eyes with the woman. The large scar drawn across the Twi'lek's bared midsection protruded from otherwise perfectly smooth blue skin. Catching Ja'Ina off-guard, Dun'ii kicked her in the face. Ja'Ina reeled from the force of the unexpected blow and the taste of blood filled her mouth. Dun'ii said nothing as she stood over Ja'Ina and Kurloh. Her face was a mask of anger.

Mehar clamped his hand around Dun'ii's upper arm and forcefully pulled her back. "That's enough, Dun'ii! All in good time…"

Ja'Ina crawled back to Kurloh and helped her sit up.

Mehar walked back to his desk and pushed a button. "The two of you will go back to your room and contemplate your situation."

The door opened to the Gamorreans waiting to escort the captive pirates back to their room.

* * *

It was getting late in the day and the tension rose on board the _Queen Valkyrie_. Ja'Ina and Kurloh left the ship with the Jedi Spiaré and went missing. Even worse, the young women went out unarmed, which was very risky on Orvax IV. And as if things couldn't get still worse than that, the Empire has apparently established a presence on the planet. And the crew still had much work to do before they could even hope to leave.

Berini had convened the meeting for all who were still aboard the ship and brought those who didn't know situation up to speed.

"Under no circumstances," Berini commanded, "are anyone to go out and try to find Kurloh and Ja'Ina. It's bad enough that they're missing, I don't want any more problems."

Standing up against the wall with her arms crossed, Myrrna added, "They got themselves into trouble; they'll have to get themselves out and we're not going to wait for them forever." Her voice conveyed a cold indifference.

"Oh come off it Myrrna," Rann shot back. "We don't know if they're truly responsible for being lost. We don't even know if they _are_ lost!"

"That doesn't matter, Rann," the Twi'lek sneered. "Either way, if they're not on board when we're ready to get underway, they'll have to take up permanent residence here."

Rann growled through gritted teeth in response to the Twi'lek's statement.

Berini slapped the table hard. "Enough! I'll freeze the both of you if you don't stop it!" She glared at Myrrna then Rann. "We're not going anywhere for now. We still need a lot of repairs and can't pay for all the materiel we still need. We need to keep on with scraping up some credits somehow."

"How?" Juun asked. "The planet's crawling with Imps now!"

"I know," Berini said, her exhaustion threatening to take her over. "That's exactly why we're heading for the Corporate Sector as soon as we get off this filthy rock."

Soraa stood up. "But that might as well be a dream! The Empire may be setting up a garrison here for all we know! I doubt they'd let us leave so easily."

Rann punched her open palm. "As much as I love blasting holes in Stormtroopers, there's too many of them now. The odds just aren't good."

Berini wanted to reassure her crew that they would succeed, but she had a hard time with reassuring herself. "I know it's much more difficult now with the Empire slithering around, but we'll have to do what we can to repair the ship."

Just then, the door opened and Spiaré stepped in, alone. He was greeted by several shocked calls of his name and stunned facial expressions.

Berini stood up. "Master Jedi, it's good of you to join us," she snidely remarked. "Where are my girls?"

The Jedi locked his stern eyes with the Captain's. "I'm afraid they've been captured."

He was answered with several cries of "What?!" or "How?!" and the like from the crew.

"Quiet!" Berini commanded. "Please enlighten us, Master Jedi."

Spiaré then proceeded to tell everyone present about Mehar and Ja'Ina's plan to con him out of money. The Jedi detailed how the deal went down and how Ja'Ina and Kurloh had failed to meet him as planned.

Soraa fell back into her chair, stunned. "I-I don't believe it! Mehar? Here?!"

Spiaré looked down at her. "Yes, my dear. It was through the will of the Force that Ja'Ina happened upon him so we could have an opportunity to make a lot of money."

Berini muttered in mocking disbelief, "hrmph, _will of the Force_…" She stormed up to the Jedi. "Just how much did you get for _my_ girls?"

Spiaré handed Berini the money. "Sixty-thousand credits."

Shocked, Berini stared down wide-eyed at the money. "I don't believe it…" She regained her composure. "First thing in the morning, we'll head out and procure the rest of the parts we need. This should more than cover it!"

Suddenly, Berini looked up at the Jedi and punched him hard in the face. The other pirates, even Myrrna, were shocked. Spiaré anticipated her action, but chose to take the hit rather than evade it. Part of him felt responsible for Kurloh and Ja'Ina's capture and therefore deserved the strike.

Spiaré rubbed the pain out of his stubbled jaw. "You feel better now?"

The Captain glared at him. "Why didn't you help them, damn you?!"

"Look, I could do only so much by myself. You know full-well that I can't reveal my true identity around here, especially now that the Empire has set up shop."

"That's a load of sithspit! You should have followed them!"

"And be caught too? Or killed? That would've done Ja'Ina and Kurloh a lot of good now, wouldn't it?"

"You should have been fully capable to rescue them with your _talents_!"

Spiaré became agitated. "The Force does not make one omnipotent or invincible!" The painful memory of the Jedi Purge stabbed through his mind and he backed off.

Tears began to fill Soraa's eyes. "Spiaré, Are they still alive?"

The Jedi closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He reached out through the flowing ribbons of the living Force to connect with the presences of the young women. He opened his eyes again. "Yes, they are. But they're in some kind of distress."

Soraa anxiously gasped.

Spiaré reassuredly squeezed the young woman's shoulder. "Don't read too much into that, Soraa. It doesn't necessarily mean they're in dire peril. Just being a prisoner is enough to cause the distress I sense."

"But I know what Ina did to Mehar! I know what he's capable of! I'm sure he wants to kill her!"

Berini turned around and put the money on the table. "This Mehar character is a strange one. I've never heard of him before. He's not part of any of the guilds, but he doesn't sound like an amateur either." She looked back at Spiaré, scowling. "I assume you know where he is."

Spiaré cocked his head. "Yes, I do. He has some kind of compound at the edge of the city to the northwest."

Berini stood for a moment, deep in thought. "Alright, here's what we'll do. We'll form a small team to go rescue Kurloh and Ja'Ina in the morning, and the rest will concentrate on finishing repairs on the _Valkyrie_."

Myrrna protested Berini's change of policy with regards to rescue. "Captain! You said-"

Berini whipped her head around to face her Twi'lek first officer and shook menacing finger at her. "I know what I said, Myrrna! I have spoken!" She took a deep breath and turned back to face the others. "Okay. I'll lead the team, which will consist of Soraa, Rann, Deoni and Spiaré… Now, where is that blasted Deoni?"

Berini removed the comlink from her belt. She tuned it to the pirates' encrypted frequency. "Deoni, come in. This is Berini. Respond…"

The only response was white noise.

"Deoni, this is your Captain, respond!"

Still no answer.

Berini forcefully deactivated the comlink in frustration. "Blast it! Her too? We can't keep doing this! We're not going to worry about Deoni until we have something to worry about!"


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

* * *

After their first meeting with Mehar as his slaves, Kurloh and Ja'Ina rested on the bed in their room. Kurloh was still recovering from the Kusolan's 'reminder'. Her montrals felt like they were on fire, which scrambled her Togruta-specific senses.

Kurloh lay back on the bed, exhausted from the ordeal. "I guess we need to take that sleemo more seriously, huh?"

"You really need to curb that tongue of yours, Ku."

"And what's the deal with that Twi'lek anyway? She's his slave and isn't?"

"I don't know exactly what Dun'ii's position is, but she does go out with him to help lure girls into his grasp. I also got the feeling she's his concubine as well."

"Whatever she is, I don't like her and I don't see her as one of us."

"Yeah, there's no way she'd be someone who would help us. I'm not sure if there're any other slaves around here either. She may be the only one he keeps around with him."

"Well Ina, we gotta find a way outta here before anything else happens. We have to warn the others about the Empire!"

Ja'Ina noticed that Kurloh was losing sight of the situation in her frustration. "Ku, focus on the here and now. I'm sure they already know and are handling it."

Kurloh was having a more difficult time with captivity than Ja'Ina was. Her combative attitude since they arrived was anything but an act. The Togruta was losing touch with the Force, which was making everything all the more difficult for her. Ja'Ina sensed her friend's troubles and tried to help.

Ja'Ina took Kurloh's hand. "Just relax for now. I don't think we're in immediate danger. Besides, you don't have as much to worry about since you don't have a vendetta against you like I do. You just have to re-center yourself and try not to needlessly aggravate Mehar."

Kurloh tried to sit back up, but Ja'Ina kept her from doing so. "That's what scares me, Ina! I'm afraid of what he'll do to you!"

Ja'Ina reassuredly smiled at Kurloh. "Don't worry about me. You know I can handle myself pretty well. We just need to take it easy 'till we can figure a way outta here. Okay?"

Kurloh nodded. "Well, let's not take _too_ long."

"Of course we won't." Ja'Ina was very afraid too, but she took her own advice and instead tried to calm her mind to think more clearly about finding a way to escape.

The two friends spent several minutes relaxing on the bed before the door opened again. This time Dun'ii came in followed by two Gamorreans. She wore an unpleasantly smug smile as she walked up to the prisoners. Kurloh started to get up again, but Ja'Ina silently motioned her to stay put.

The Twi'lek walked right up to Ja'Ina. "Master Mehar _requests_ your presence," she sneered.

Ja'Ina was unnerved by Dun'ii's tone. The young woman couldn't quite pinpoint the unpleasant sensations emanating from her through the Force to determine just what the Twi'lek was referring to.

"I suppose I can't refuse such a request." Ja'Ina stood up with a resigning sigh.

Kurloh urgently sat up. "Ina!"

Ja'Ina looked back at Kurloh. "I'll be alright, Ku. Remember what we talked about." Ja'Ina reached out through the Force to try to comfort her friend.

Dun'ii looked over at the Togruta and gave her a devious wink. Kurloh scowled back and helplessly watched as Ja'Ina was escorted out.

Dun'ii led Ja'Ina along the corridor with the Gamorreans walking right behind. Ja'Ina tried to think of something to say to the Twi'lek, but nothing meaningful came to mind. So she decided instead to remain silent and reflect on the living Force as she walked to help keep herself calm and focused. Truth was she could just about bet what Mehar summoned her for, and she feared the worst. But the last thing she wanted to do was lose her wits.

The walk seemed to take forever to Ja'Ina, but the destination was actually much closer than Mehar's office, being on the same subterranean level as their room. After a couple of turns, they arrived at an open heavy door. Without saying a word, Dun'ii motioned into the doorway while grinning at Ja'Ina, a grin that made the young woman feel very uncomfortable.

Ja'Ina fought to maintain a strong countenance as she slightly nodded to the Twi'lek and slowly stepped inside. Dun'ii gave her a push from behind and followed her in. The Gamorreans forcefully shut and locked the door behind the women. They stood guard just outside in the corridor.

The small room was dimly lit and featureless. There was no furniture and the walls were smooth, suggesting a prison cell. Mehar was already waiting inside.

The slaver opened his arms as if he wanted to hug Ja'Ina. "Welcome! Please come in!"

Ja'Ina frowned. "Get off it, Mehar. Just do what you're going to do. Don't waste my time or yours." She had to work hard to stay brave against the uncertain situation.

Mehar feigned a confused look. "My dear girl, what do you think I'm going to do?"

Ja'Ina stood stoically, choosing not to answer his question. Dun'ii softly chuckled behind her.

Mehar stepped towards Ja'Ina. She quickly tried to step back but was stopped by Dun'ii, who grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back.

Ja'Ina could probably take the Twi'lek down with no problem, but she wasn't certain about Mehar with his implant controller. Still, even if she could subdue him as well, it wouldn't do her any good while locked in the cell anyway. Mehar reached out to Ja'Ina's free arm and clamped his mechanical claw around her narrow wrist. She winced at the painful pinch of his grasp as he pulled her to him.

Mehar's foul-smelling breath filled her face. "I have some special guests coming tomorrow morning and we'll be entertaining them for breakfast."

Inside, Ja'Ina felt a minute sense of relief. It sounded like he wasn't going to kill her, at least not yet.

"However," the slaver continued, "I wanted to enjoy softening you up a bit before then…"

Ja'Ina's eyes grew wide and her heart skipped a beat. Mehar chuckled menacingly as he reached for the control.

The Gamorreans who stood guard in the corridor could clearly hear the young woman's anguished screams coming from behind the cell door.

* * *

In the evening following the crew meeting, Spiaré spent some time with Soraa, who was beside herself with worry over Ja'Ina's well-being. They were in her quarters and the Jedi had the young woman lay back in her bunk to try to relax. He reached out to her through the Force to try to soothe her troubled mind.

Spiaré had his hand on Soraa's forehead. "Just breathe slowly and deeply. Focus on the positives." Soraa complied.

"You know, Ina said something similar to me a long time back when she helped me to relax," she added.

"Ja'Ina has quite a bit of wisdom in her, in spite of her lack of years. You're very lucky to have her in your life."

Soraa smiled. "I know… I'm grateful for her every day."

Soraa's thoughts turned to Ja'Ina. She wondered if maybe Ja'Ina could somehow feel them through the Force, even though she herself was not imbued with those mystical abilities.

Spiaré knowingly smiled. "You know, don't you?"

The Jedi's question jolted Soraa from her thoughts. "Whaa-? Know what?"

Spiaré sat up, put a hand on his hip and looked at her incredulously. Once she realized what he was referring to, the young woman did all she could to try to look innocent. But after a few moments, Soraa relented.

"Yeah, I know; about both Ina and Ku's connection to the Force."

"I had a feeling that Ja'Ina would tell you someday, but I didn't expect it this soon. I know how close the two of you are, probably more than you do yourself. She couldn't keep such a secret from you forever."

Soraa sat up and looked at the Jedi with an expression of disappointment. "Yeah, but Ina didn't tell me what she was going to do this morning. And now look what happened…" Her eyes started tearing up and her lower lip quivered.

"I know, I know. Unfortunately, things didn't go quite as planned."

Soraa wiped the tears from her eyes. "Planned? Ku said that Jedi were able to see the future!"

"That's true, to a certain degree. But the future's always in motion, so it's hard to tell much of the time. Not even the most powerful Jedi have a complete picture of things to come." He sighed, disappointed with himself. "I'm sorry."

"I just can't believe that Ina didn't tell me."

"Had things worked out as planned, she would have told you after the fact. Please realize that it was to protect you. You were still healing, and the subject of Mehar is already a very sensitive one for both of you. Although risky, I felt Ja'Ina's was a good idea to get the money we needed to-"

Spiaré was cut short by a painfully intense stab that resonated through the Force. Ja'Ina's tortured agony ripped through his being; he couldn't help but bow his head and grimace.

Soraa grabbed his shoulders. "Spiaré! What's wrong?"

The Jedi refocused to help clear his mind. "I-it's nothing." He looked up at her and rubbed his head, messing his graying hair. "I'm just a little tired, that's all." He took a deep breath. He dared not tell Soraa what really just happened.

Spiaré stood up. "You should rest up, we've got a busy day tomorrow."

Though she was confused, Soraa agreed and lay back down in her bunk. Spiaré silently turned and left her quarters.

After he closed the door, Spiaré exhaustedly leaned up against the corridor wall. He was quite worried about Ja'Ina and Kurloh. While he stressed to them that he wasn't their master, part of him still couldn't help but feel like they were his Padawans. He felt responsible for them in that capacity and cared deeply for them. A single tear streaked down his cheek.

_Hang in there girls, we're coming._


	8. Chapter 8

_Author's Note: I apologize for the delay in updating, especially since the bantha dung's starting to hit the air circulator. :-) I've been out of the loop for a bit, but now we're good to continue with the story. Thanks for sticking with me!  
_

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

* * *

Early the next morning, the crew of the _Queen Valkyrie_ prepared for the next stage of their work. Now that they had enough money to procure the needed materiel to complete the repairs, their goal of departing Orvax IV for the Corporate Sector was within sight. There, they could seek refuge from the Empire, whose forces had caught up to them on this distant planet.

Unfortunately, the sum of money came at the dear price of losing Ja'Ina and Kurloh to the slaver Mehar. Berini was not about to leave without them if she had anything to say about it.

With Imperial forces now occupying the cities, only those absolutely necessary were to leave the ship. Berini would lead a rescue team comprised of Soraa, Rann and Spiaré.

The only others who would go out were the procurement party, led by Juun and consisting of the Mirialan Teedai, the Twi'lek Taam, the Theelin Marka and a Lorrdian named Yurlya.

Fitty stayed on board the ship in order to help with repairs. The astromech's starship maintenance functions had been indispensable ever since he arrived on board the _Valkyrie_ with Soraa and Ja'Ina.

As the teams disembarked the ship, they caught no sight of any Imperial forces around the landing platforms.

_At least we're able to head out for now_, Berini thought.

Still, the lack of clear Imperial presence didn't give the Captain much comfort. The Imperials may know that the pirates were unable to leave the planet so there was no need for them to be there. Or perhaps they were observing the pirates covertly to determine when best to strike.

Berini chose to not think any more about it, she could already tell that she started to over-think the situation, which would certainly lead to mistakes. No, she would just carry on with the plan and deal with whatever happens as it happens.

Taking no chances, both teams left well-armed to account for the worst-case scenario. Even Spiaré carried his lightsaber this time. Hoping for the best, Soraa carried Ja'Ina's scimitar with her. Soraa looked forward to giving it back to her dear friend when – not if – she saw her again.

* * *

Ja'Ina slowly woke up. The bed was warm and comfortable, but still not enough to counter the hell she had just endured, nor the pain that still coursed through her entire body. She started trembling in fear and clutched the covers tightly around her. She softly whimpered.

Kurloh leaned over her friend. "It's okay, Ina. You're safe now."

Ja'Ina turned over and looked up at Kurloh. She could say nothing, but started crying. The Togruta took her in her arms and gave her a big, long hug.

"Shhhh, relax Ina. Shhhh, I'm here."

Ja'Ina struggled to speak through her sobbing. "I-I can't b-believe anyone c-could be ssso…cruel…"

"I know. He's lower than a slimy blood-worm. And that's insulting to the worm." Kurloh smiled at Ja'Ina to try to ease the situation, but it was difficult for her to smile.

"H-how long?"

"Without windows or a chronometer in here, it's hard to say. They brought you back unconscious and you've been asleep the whole time since. I was going to try waking you up soon. We need to get up and ready."

At first Ja'Ina was confused; her memory was somewhat scrambled by her ordeal. Then she recalled, "M-Mehar's gonna have some guests this morning!"

"Shhh, I know all about it."

"H-how?"

"An acquaintance of yours filled me in." Kurloh pointed behind her shoulder.

Ja'Ina slowly craned her head to see beyond Kurloh, unsure who she referred to. The young woman had to squint as her eyesight was blurred from Mehar's abuse. Then she recognized who she was looking at.

"T-Tira?"

Tira stood up and walked over to the bed. "Hi, Ja'Ina. It's good to see you again. Though I wish the circumstances were better." Both her face and voice expressed melancholy.

"We thought you were dead!" Ja'Ina tried to get out of the bed, but her body was still weak.

Pain filled Tira's face. "Part of me wishes Mehar did kill me that day. That would have been better…"

Tira was dressed in a flowing liquid silver gown, the right side of which completely open save for thin straps at her hip and chest. It was backless and exposed her midriff and belly, displaying much of her alabaster skin. Her brown hair was considerably longer than when Ja'Ina saw her last. She leaned over and hugged Ja'Ina.

Ja'Ina started to cry again. "I'm sorry I couldn't rescue you. I'm sorry." She buried her face in her hands.

Tira sat on the bed next to her. "No, no, Ja'Ina. You did your best and I thank you for that. I had lost all hope of freedom before I met you and Soraa! You were the first to resist Mehar like you did, and it totally caught him off-guard. All the girls before you were helpless, while you were strong! You _are_ strong! Please remember that." She put her hand on Ja'Ina's shoulder and smiled. "Besides, your idea to con Mehar was gutsy genius."

Those words resonated with Ja'Ina and brought her around. It didn't completely quell her fear, but helped her gain new resolve.

Kurloh sensed the calm that returned to her friend's mind. "That's right Ina! We just gotta keep up that kind of spirit, no matter what happens. I'm actually curious what this little breakfast party is about."

Ja'Ina gathered herself and slowly got up out of the bed. She was still a bit unsteady on her feet, so she tried to walk it off. Her friends were impressed with her perseverance.

Ja'Ina turned around and looked at Tira with a smile. "By the way, you can call me 'Ina'."

* * *

A short time later, the door to the bedroom opened and three Gamorreans walked in. The guards launched into a string of grunts, snorts and squeals which were incomprehensible to Ja'Ina and Kurloh.

Tira understood a little bit of Gamorrese from her time with Mehar. "They're here to escort us to the dining chamber," she translated.

Kurloh took Ja'Ina's arm. "See? Nothing to worry about."

Ja'Ina frowned. "As long as we're not on the menu."

"Now that was a sick joke!" the Togruta shot back.

She did sense that the young woman was not joking. The fear swirling inside of Ja'Ina gave her fleeting, irrational thoughts of what Mehar wanted to do with her.

Tira redirected them, "Enough of that, just go."

The Gamorrean guards escorted the three slave girls down the corridor to an area unfamiliar to the pirates. The pitter-patter of the women's bare feet could barely be heard over the guards' lumbering steps. They went up a few levels and were led to a set of double-doors that led into a kitchen. There were a couple of cooks working away at several plates of good-smelling food. Ja'Ina's stomach growled, which reminded her that she and Kurloh hadn't even been fed since they were brought here. Their last meal was a meager, early breakfast aboard the _Queen Valkyrie_ the day before.

Tira looked at Kurloh and Ja'Ina. "Just follow my lead."

"Who are our guests?" Kurloh asked.

"I dunno. Just follow me and you'll be fine."

There were three round trays each with a large pitcher and five glasses. Each woman took one. Ja'Ina was reminded of the days back when she tended the bar at Norrel's Haven back on Galathu. It seemed like a lifetime ago, and was a more pleasant time then. This was not what she had in mind for a life of excitement and adventure. She tried to focus on those memories in order to make the current situation more bearable.

The women walked to another set of swinging doors with Tira in the lead followed by Kurloh and then Ja'Ina. The Gamorreans stayed behind in the kitchen as the slave girls walked through the doors into the dining hall.

As Kurloh passed through the door, she quickly scanned the room. Ja'Ina felt a sharp sense of alarm through the Force from the Togruta and as a result she tensed up. Still, she kept walking.

Ja'Ina stepped out into the hall. Startled by what she saw, she nearly dropped the tray but managed to recover without drawing too much extra attention. Several Stormtroopers stood along the walls of the hall, and sitting with Mehar at the large dining table were three Imperial officers in full uniform.

Mehar was at the head of the table nearest to the kitchen with Dun'ii sitting very close to him. Two of the officers sat to Mehar's left and the third on his right. A fourth place was set but unoccupied. The expansive hall was well decorated with fine art from around the galaxy. It was well-lit via artificial lumas and several high-set windows on either side.

Kurloh and Ja'Ina stood by as they watched Tira serve from her tray. They then followed suit with their beverages. The male officers were clearly pleased with the sight of the attractive female slaves in their revealing silver attire.

Dun'ii was wearing a new outfit this time. It was a silver gown with various cutouts, including a large one baring her midriff and belly that prominently displayed her scar. It was almost as if the garment was made to draw attention to the wound to shame her. The Twi'lek raised an empty glass up to Ja'Ina to indicate she wanted it filled. Ja'Ina silently poured the drink, which was met with a nasty sneer from Mehar's slave-consort.

Kurloh poured a drink for one of the officers, who reciprocated with a groping grab. She couldn't help but yelp from the assault. He gave her a smug smile, which angered her even more. Tira loudly cleared her throat which reminded the Togruta of her subservient position. Kurloh backed down and smiled uncomfortably at the officer.

Tira motioned to Ja'Ina and Kurloh to stand next to her against the wall behind Mehar. Still carrying their empty trays, the captive pirates briskly walked to her with their silvery half-skirts flowing behind them. Mehar didn't say a thing to his slaves, focusing instead on his guests.

Mehar addressed the officer to his right. "Commander Pavan, welcome to my humble abode!"

"We appreciate your hospitality, Mehar," Pavan replied with a slight nod.

"And I appreciate the Empire's endorsement of my line of business."

"The Emperor appreciates the _many_ uses for slaves. What would the galaxy be without them?"

The slaver let out a snorting laugh. "Indeed Commander, indeed!" He motioned to Dun'ii, who gave him the drink Ja'Ina had poured. He raised it to toast. "To the Emperor!"

The three officers raised their glasses in toast as well, though Pavan was the only one who echoed Mehar's words. They all took a drink.

Mehar then clapped his fat palms together.

Tira whispered to her friends. "That's our cue. Back to the kitchen."

Kurloh and Ja'Ina nodded and the three of them left the dining hall. The cooks were gone but left several trays of food for the slaves to take out to the diners. The three Gamorreans stood guard to ensure the women would go only back into the dining hall and nowhere else.

As the women picked up the food, Ja'Ina leaned over to Kurloh. "What the kriff are Imperials doing here?"

"I dunno Ina," the Togruta gruffly answered, "but it looks like things are getting worse by the minute."

That was the last thing Ja'Ina needed to hear. Fear began to swell inside her again. She took a deep breath and tried to focus on the living Force to re-center herself. It was getting more difficult for her to do so.

"That's not important right now," Tira redirected. "Focus on your duties or there'll be hell to pay for _all_ of us!"

Ja'Ina nodded, knowing it was best to focus on the here and now. She wondered how many times she'd told Soraa the same thing over the years.

Quickly and carefully, the three women returned to the dining hall with the trays of food. Again, Ja'Ina and Kurloh fell in behind Tira and followed her lead. Ja'Ina's stomach growled once more as she smelled the delicious food.

Mehar and the officers ate their breakfast, chit-chatting all the while about meaningless pleasantries. Tira, Kurloh and Ja'Ina stood against the wall, carefully watching for any calls for their services, usually to refill drinks.

Ja'Ina went along with the situation, extra careful to not displease her master or his guests. She realized her treatment did indeed 'soften' her up, which disturbed her greatly. But she'd be damned if she'd let Mehar break her. Kurloh also went along with it, though rather begrudgingly. Tira, on the other hand, performed her duties like she was a seasoned professional, not showing even a hint that she didn't want to be there.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

* * *

Once the meal was done and the slaves cleared the table, Mehar reclined in his chair. Dun'ii lit the spice cigar in his mouth and he took a puff before he spoke.

"Gentlemen, before we get down to business, let's have a little entertainment!"

Pavan interjected, "Mehar, we really should be-"

"Nonsense, Commander!" Mehar laughed. "Ja'Ina here will dance for our pleasure!"

Startled, Ja'Ina jumped at the sound of her name. "M-me?"

Annoyed, Mehar waved his chubby arm, commanding her to approach the table. "Yes, you! Be a good girl and show our guests how good of a dancer you are!"

With that, Mehar started a music player and the sound filled the hall. To Ja'Ina's surprise, it was The Sea of Lights' music. It was the audio recording Soraa had to leave behind when they escaped Mehar's ship back in Jum Katar spaceport.

The music brought more of the good memories of home back to Ja'Ina and she started to move to the sounds without even thinking about it. She allowed herself to be carried away by the music she had heard and danced to many times before at Norrel's Haven. This was the only escape she was afforded for now and she readily surrendered to it.

Ja'Ina's movements were hypnotic, sensual and beautiful. She traveled all around the hall, utilizing the open space around the table. She twirled up to one of the Stormtroopers standing along the wall. He stood perfectly still as she shimmied right in front of him, playing with the trailing silver fabric of her skimpy outfit. Through the Force, Ja'Ina could sense the trooper's excitement grow as she moved all around him. This reminded her of old times when she and Soraa would tease the local men in Sim Katall.

Ja'Ina continued around the room, losing herself in the moment. She couldn't help it. The pleasant memories of home overrode the current unpleasant situation as she subconsciously used it to cope.

Mehar and the Imperial officers watched in amazement. The young woman moved as if she were in a trance, being one with the music. Her beauty and grace were not lost on them either. Her revealing slave outfit highlighted her feminine beauty and embellished her movements.

The song ended and Ja'Ina concluded her dance with a graceful bow to her audience before she remembered where she was. For a moment, she truly thought she was back home again, performing for the crowd at The Haven. Her heart broke when she reconnected to the present.

_Dammit, Ina, _she admonished herself._ Focus on the here and now._

As Mehar and the officers applauded, Ja'Ina returned to her place against the wall by the kitchen with her fellow slaves. She sadly hung her head, mourning the loss of the past and feeling ashamed for enjoying the dance for her master. Tira and Kurloh quietly reassured her that they knew she wasn't really dancing for Mehar and the Imperial officers' pleasure.

After gathering himself for a few moments, Mehar shifted in his chair. "So gentlemen, what brings you here this morning? I know your people have been visiting with some of my colleagues the last couple of days."

Pavan sat up erect. "Then you probably know why we're here, Mehar."

"I've heard some wild rumors, but I'd like to hear it straight from the bantha's mouth, Commander."

"We have tracked a very dangerous fugitive of the Empire to Orvax IV."

Against the wall with the others, Ja'Ina whispered to Kurloh, "Does he mean Berini?"

Kurloh answered with a quiet, but urgent, "Shush!"

Mehar chuckled and took a drink. "And this fugitive is dangerous enough to have you come all the way out to our distant ring of the galaxy?"

"More dangerous than you could possibly imagine, I assure you. He managed to evade us for many years now and we finally zeroed in on him."

_Him?_ Ja'Ina thought to herself. _He can't mean-_

"He's a Jedi," Pavan finished.

Mehar nearly choked on his own tongue. Wide-eyed, he sat up and snorted. "A Jedi? Here?! Surely you're mistaken, Commander! There've been no Jedi in the galaxy for about twenty years now! Your people made sure of that!"

One of the men to the left of Mehar, Lieutenant Oabeck, produced a palm-sized holoprojector. "This is the person we're looking for." He activated the device and a three-dimensional image of Spiaré's head materialized and slowly rotated around above the projector for all to see.

"What?! Him?" Mehar pointed his fat index finger at the image with a snort.

Pavan was clearly pleased, but remained calm and composed. "So you've seen him then?"

"Of course I have! I would have never suspected him to be a Jedi though! I bought those two girls from him just yesterday!" The Kusolan shot his thumb back at Kurloh and Ja'Ina behind him.

The two pirates broke into a cold sweat. They took each other's hand and looked at each other, panic-stricken.

Mehar barked at the women, startling them. "Ja'Ina! Kurloh! Come here!"

Kurloh and Ja'Ina stood frozen in place, unsure of what they should do.

Mehar turned around in his chair to face the women behind him, clearly angry. "Slaves! Now!" He punctuated his demand with a loud, hideous snort from his wide, warty nose.

Ja'Ina and Kurloh timidly stepped towards the table, leaving Tira against the wall. The pirates were certain their time was up and there was nothing they could do about it. They clasped each other's hand more tightly as they approached Mehar from his right.

Mehar turned back to his guests, his face pleasant once more. "I acquired these two lovelies from Mister Cor-Fii at a tavern in town. He got a lot of money for them, but in the end I think it was worth it."

Lieutenant Oabeck raised an eyebrow. "_Cor-Fii_? His name is Spiaré."

Both Ja'Ina and Kurloh tensed up at the sound of the Jedi's name. Their hearts pounded in their chests and their mouths went dry. At this point, their wits were all but spent.

"Ohhhhh really?" Mehar turned back to the women. "What other falsehoods did I hear yesterday, hmmm girls?"

Ja'Ina swallowed hard and gave Kurloh's hand a pulsing squeeze. "Well, I, uhhh-"

Pavan stood up and approached the women. "That doesn't matter! What matters is the Jedi's current whereabouts." He got right in Ja'Ina's face and forcefully grabbed her by the chin. "Where is he?"

Kurloh reflexively went for Pavan, but Mehar painfully grabbed the Togruta's arm and yanked her back to him.

The officer's strong grasp contorted the young woman's mouth, making it hard for her to speak. "I… don't know where… Cor-Fii is." Ja'Ina decided she would play the ruse to the very end, even if she had to die for it. She refused to let the Empire have Spiaré, who was quite possibly the last Jedi left in the galaxy.

Pavan grew angrier and squeezed Ja'Ina's chin harder. "Spiaré! His name is _Spiaré_!"

"I don't… know where he… is!" Ja'Ina's eyes filled with tears from the pain of Pavan's grip.

Mehar snorted. "Commander, if you please! She's mine to deal with. If she's lying, I assure you I can get it out of her. _Quickly_."

Pavan glared at Ja'Ina, who shook and whined in his grasp. He then shoved her back down to the floor. Mehar chuckled and let Kurloh go to be by Ja'Ina's side. The Kusolan stood up with Dun'ii still smugly attached to his arm.

Mehar reached for the implant control. "Commander, you and your men are more than welcome to watch as I go to work on her."

Kurloh couldn't take it anymore. She lunged towards her master with a growl. Mehar activated her implant and the Togruta collapsed in a convulsing heap. The other officers stood up and watched from their side of the table, shocked by the sight. Even the Stormtroopers took notice from their positions around the room. Tira stood aghast against the wall.

Mehar stood over Ja'Ina, who was cowering on the floor. She didn't want to endure the excruciating pain from the infernal thing embedded in her neck again, but she refused to out Spiaré nonetheless.

Mehar feigned a pleasant paternal tone. "Now Ja'Ina, my dear, where is the Jedi?"

Quivering and whimpering, Ja'Ina quickly shook her head.

"Hmmm, very well then. We'll find out either way…"

A new voice rang through the hall. "That won't be necessary."

Mehar, Dun'ii and the Imperials turned to the newcomer. Ja'Ina peered up over to the far side of the table. She saw who it was and nearly passed out from the shock.

Pavan addressed the newcomer with a thin smile. "Ahhh, Agent Vell. Good of you to finally join us."

Deoni walked up to Pavan and saluted. "Commander, forgive my delay." She looked down at Ja'Ina with a sinister smile. "As long as you have these two girls, the Jedi will come for them. I _guarantee_ it."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

* * *

The two excursion teams from the _Queen Valkyrie_ set out cautiously on their respective missions. One left to procure parts to complete repairs to the ship and the other to rescue their captured comrades. The entire crew on and off the ship were on high alert with the Imperial presence around them. Berini had no idea what the Empire knew about the pirates' state of operation or their intentions, and that's what worried her the most.

The Captain had Myrrna secure the ship in the hopes that everyone who remained on board would remain safe. They couldn't do much other than wait until Juun's team returned with the supplies. Myrrna had Aurelia stay close to her the entire time. Though the Twi'lek didn't show it, she too cared for the teen very much. While the Captain was away she took full responsibility for the young girl's well-being. Myrrna, just like the rest of Aurelia's 'big sisters', would give her life to protect her.

Berini drove the landspeeder through the streets of the capital city. She made sure to drive casually as to not attract any unwanted attention from the Imperial troops they encountered along the way. She still wore her anonymous spacer's jumpsuit, but this time openly carried her custom blaster.

Soraa wore her skintight knee-length shorts and tank top combo. She carried her DL-44 heavy blaster pistol and a smaller Merr-Sonn blaster, as well as a hold-out blaster in her boot along with extra power packs on her belt. She also had Ja'Ina's cortosis scimitar slung over her shoulder underneath her armorweave jacket; its hilt protruding behind her head.

Spiaré now carried his lightsaber, but still concealed himself under his hooded cloak.

Rann sported a blaster pistol as well as her signature T-28 sniper blaster rifle, disassembled in its case.

The team meant business when it came to rescuing Ja'Ina and Kurloh. They knew they were going up against a serious slaver. But they did not know about the trap that awaited them at Mehar's compound.

* * *

"This is Special Agent Deoni Vell, one of our best operatives in Imperial Intelligence," Commander Pavan proudly told Mehar. "She has been following this Jedi across several systems. Unfortunately, a band of pirates took him in, making it a bit more difficult to apprehend him."

Mehar suspiciously eyed Kurloh and Ja'Ina, who were still on the floor recovering from their abuse. "Pirates, eh? You girls are full of surprises indeed! To think that my newest slaves were once pirates…"

Deoni turned to Mehar and frowned. "Don't be too proud of yourself, _slaver_. It was only through the Empire's efforts that you were able to obtain these criminals. This is much bigger than you could possibly understand. I've lived among the pirates for several days now."

Mehar nervously raised his fat hands up in front of him, palms out. "I beg your pardon, Agent Vell. I meant no disrespect!"

Pavan continued. "You are welcome to keep them, Mehar. They're not our target, and I think this is a much more deserving fate for them."

Ja'Ina started to get up. "Please, Commander! We-"

Mehar reached for the implant control. "Silence! Or do you need another _reminder_?" He smiled wickedly at his captive.

Ja'Ina backed down and held Kurloh, who was still a bit dazed from her own 'reminder.'

The slaver yelled towards the kitchen doors. "Guards! Get in here!"

The three Gamorreans lumbered out of the kitchen over to their boss.

"Take them away, but keep them separated," he commanded as he motioned to Kurloh and Ja'Ina.

As the guards hefted the slaves up off the floor, Ja'Ina squeaked, "But-"

Two of the Gamorreans forcefully led Kurloh and Ja'Ina out of the dining hall. Tira anxiously watched them leave from her place against the wall near the kitchen door, not knowing what to do other than stay put.

Dun'ii walked over to Tira. "Just be thankful you're not them," she said with a smirk.

Tira frowned at the Twi'lek without saying a word. Even though Dun'ii was still technically a slave, Tira had to yield to her like she did Mehar.

The third Gamorrean escorted Tira out of the hall back to her room. Dun'ii followed close behind, rather pleased with herself.

Mehar motioned to his guests to sit. "Please everyone; tell me more about the situation."

They all sat down around the table, with Deoni taking the previously-vacant chair next to Commander Pavan.

The Zeltron agent continued the discussion. "Mehar, just how much did you pay Spiaré for Ja'Ina and Kurloh?"

Mehar sighed. "Sixty-thousand." It was painful for him to say it.

"What?!" Deoni shot back out of her seat.

The third officer, Lieutenant Durrn, interjected, "That dramatically changes things."

"Why is that?" the Kusolan asked, confused.

Deoni shook her head. "That means the pirates are now able to buy everything they need to repair their ship! All the more reason for you to keep Kurloh and Ja'Ina…_alive_. Spiaré and the pirates will not leave Orvax IV without them."

Mehar saw an enterprising opportunity and relaxed in his chair with a snort. "Well, it's like this… Ja'Ina owes me big time." He displayed his mechanical claw. "Among other things, she robbed me of my hand some time ago. I haven't yet decided if I want to keep her alive. What's in it for me if I keep her safe and sound?"

Annoyed, Pavan raised an eyebrow at the Kusolan. "Mehar, you overestimate your position. Even if you kill the pirates, the Jedi will still come. Only it will be for your head."

Mehar reflexively grabbed his throat, clearly unnerved.

"So I suggest you don't even think of trying to take advantage of the Empire, or we'll just have to seize your entire operation and you can rot in an asteroid labor camp the rest of your miserable life."

Mehar cleared his throat with a croaking sound. "I assure you Commander, th-that won't be necessary!"

"Good," Deoni answered. "As for right now, we would_ appreciate it _if you kept Ja'Ina and Kurloh alive. Once we have the Jedi, you can do whatever you want with them."

"Of course! Of course!" Mehar nervously gulped the last of his drink. "I'm at your service!"

* * *

Once Berini and her team made their way to the edge of the capital city, she opened the landspeeder's throttle and headed towards the city where Mehar's compound was situated. The road cut through many geographical features, but was less-traveled due to the fact that most traveled via airborne vehicles.

The Captain called to Spiaré, who was sitting next to her in the front seat. "You you sense anything?"

"Nothing different from before, Berini. Let's just focus on getting there."

Berini scowled. "Don't order me around, Jedi!"

"It wasn't an order, just a reminder."

Berini grunted and turned her attention back to driving the speeder. She greatly feared for Kurloh and Ja'Ina. Spiaré knew it. He was fascinated by what he sensed in the pirate captain through the Force. They were the sensations of a loving mother concerned for her children, not just a captain for her crew. He had been told many times how Berini regarded her crew as her family, but never felt it this clearly before.

Rann spoke up, to no one in particular. "Is it just me, or did it seem too easy getting out of town?"

Spiaré answered first. "I wondered that myself. It felt like the Stormtroopers were watching us, but there's been no pursuit. I hope that I'm just being paranoid, but just in case, let's keep aware of our surroundings; especially as we get closer to Mehar's compound."

Berini waved a dismissive hand in the air. "You're all being paranoid! We'll get there in about an hour, take care of our business and get off this rock before they know anything."

Spiaré looked back behind the speeder at the increasingly distant capital city; his face was one of concern, which made Soraa nervous. The Jedi looked at her and smiled as if to reassure her that everything was okay.

* * *

At Mehar's compound, the Gamorrean guards took Kurloh back to the bedroom while Ja'Ina was returned to the cell where she had been tortured the night before. The large porcine guard roughly tossed Ja'Ina into the cell and quickly slammed the door shut, locking her inside all alone.

The young woman dropped to the floor, dejected. Her hair was messed up and her face still hurt from Pavan's abusive grip. She hoped that Kurloh was okay. The Togruta was still a little out of it when they were taken away.

Ja'Ina felt the ever-present fear inside her begin to grow. She tried to fight it, but she found it very difficult to do. Through the Force she began to sense a darkness not much different from that which she felt when she had killed Marek in anger. That sensation served only to feed her fear and propagate a vicious cycle. She tried to breathe through it to relax and focus on all the positive things that help her connect with the light side.

Ja'Ina sat cross-legged in the middle of the cell and began to meditate on the living Force. The darkness pushed hard against her being, but she pushed back. She knew that the others would come for her and Kurloh. She needed to connect with the Force and attempt to send a warning to Spiaré, though she didn't actually know how to send such a message.

The fear of her uncertain fate began to subside from Ja'Ina's mind and a warm peace began to manifest itself within her. She wanted nothing more than to get a message to Spiaré before he and the others would step into the trap laid by the Empire.

Ja'Ina's fear was nearly gone when she was suddenly snapped out of her meditative trance by the unlocking of the heavy door. It opened and Deoni stepped inside.

Ja'Ina jumped to her feet, balling her fists in anger. "Get the hell outta here, Deoni!"

Deoni closed the door behind her. "Hey, is that any way to treat a friend?"

"_Friend_? That's a wad of sithspit, you traitor!"

"My dear, remember _we're_ the ones running the galaxy. You and the rest of the pirates are the traitors for harboring a Jedi."

"Just leave me alone, you filthy sleemo!"

Deoni walked right up to Ja'Ina and got in her face. "You really should thank me! I saved your life, or at the very least prolonged it."

Ja'Ina answered with a bitter scowl. Hatred for Deoni surged within her. Thoughts of throttling the two-faced Zeltron flashed through her mind.

"I'm serious! Mehar really has it in for you and I'm sure he'll kill you when he tires of your presence. And from what I've seen it looks like it won't be a _pleasant_ death."

"Why should you care what he does with me?"

Deoni chuckled, "You're right, I really don't. But for right now, you and Kurloh are bait for Spiaré. We'll make sure that the _Queen Valkyrie_ won't go anywhere either."

Tired and hopeless, Ja'Ina turned and sat down on the floor against the far wall. "So how'd you find him anyway?" She didn't think the Zeltron would oblige her, but asked anyway.

"Well, that's quite the story," Deoni said with a smile. "I suppose I could share it with you." She walked up and sat down on the floor just beyond arms' reach in front of her former comrade. "About three standard years ago, Imperial Intelligence assigned me to investigate some strange incidents involving what appeared to be random attacks on various Imperial interests. It seemed random at first, but they grew in frequency and stayed mostly within the same few neighboring sectors."

_Spiaré got careless_, Ja'Ina thought.

"I looked into the aftermath of the sabotages and the deaths of Imperial personnel. The perpetrator made sure to leave no witnesses alive, but I easily found evidence that pointed to someone who used a lightsaber in every incident. This made it likely that our assailant was a Jedi who somehow managed to survive after all these years since the Purge."

Deoni paused for a moment and read the nervousness in Ja'Ina's eyes. The prisoner stared back at her without saying a thing. The Zeltron smiled again.

"We figured that he was working for the rebels, so I began tracking down any rebel agents and sympathizers in the region whom he could be working for. I must admit, it took a long time. Spiaré was wise to never make direct contact with the rebels he worked with. We finally caught one and _persuaded_ him to tell us all about the job he had just sent Spiaré on."

Ja'Ina felt sick to her stomach. "I can imagine how you persuasive you were."

Deoni sat up proudly. "The Empire is most efficient in such matters."

"So I've heard."

Deoni laughed. "I'm sure you have!" She turned serious again. "I arrived on the scene as it was in progress. The Jedi was most impressive. Our men stood no chance against him. I observed the entire incident and managed to take a holoimage of him."

"That was enough to identify him by name?"

"My dear slave girl, the Empire has complete records all the way back to the days of the Old Republic, including the Jedi Archives. The Archives are extensive, so it took some time to search the database, but I eventually confirmed Spiaré's identity. I can even tell you when he was brought into the Order, who his masters were, what lightsaber combat forms he trained in, where he fought in the Clone Wars. _Everything_."

Ja'Ina was visibly disheartened. That pleased the Imperial spy.

"Of course, his entry denoted his fate as missing, presumed killed in the Purge. But I corrected that error. I plan on entering his true date of death very soon."

Ja'Ina looked down at her lap and her bare, crossed legs. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Deoni allowed her a few moments to process what she just said.

The young woman suddenly looked up. "So how did you track him to Olu-Dra? How did you know to come aboard the _Queen Valkyrie_?"

"Well, I must say I can take personal responsibility for that one. There was a suspected rebel weapons smuggler who I decided to bait the Jedi with. We knew this smuggler operated a swoop racing front on Olu-Dra III, so we staged an attempt on his life at a race with an assassin droid. We made sure the droid would inflict a lot of collateral damage and casualties in the process, which we hoped would cause the rebel to panic into carelessness."

Ja'Ina continued for her. "So he put an open call out for bounties to anyone and everyone who would accept the job."

"Yes," Deoni playfully hissed. "We knew that when the rebel called out so many bounty hunters, Spiaré would be one of them. Then I heard that another hunter answering the call was the one and only pirate queen Berini!"

Ja'Ina's jaw dropped. "You know about her?"

"It's our business to know everything! She has a reputation as a capable bounty hunter and an Imperial Navy deserter. Berini was nobody important in the Navy and wisely hasn't interfered with the Empire's operations, so we haven't bothered with her." Deoni looked off to the side and ran her fingers through her dark blue hair. "Unfortunately, I hooked up with your crew a little late. You were already on Olu-Dra chasing after our droid, and so was Spiaré."

"But Ekha actually put the bounty call out as a distraction. Spiaré was the only one really sent to hunt the droid. We didn't know it at the time, but the rest of us were used as a diversion; we were never meant to succeed in the hunt."

Deoni looked back at Ja'Ina with a raised eyebrow. "Oh really? Interesting… Whatever the rebel scum's reason, he's since been dealt with." She took a deep breath. "Imagine what a pleasant surprise it was for me when Spiaré _magically_ appeared on your ship!"

"So then you called the Star Destroyer after us…"

"No, the forces you tangled with on Olu-Dra were based from that ship. They just happened to come along before you had a chance to leave the system. It wasn't until we arrived on Orvax IV that I was able to direct them to you. I'm impressed that Berini managed to avoid being tracked when she made the jump to hyperspace."

"And you held us here while your cronies were on their way."

"I had to keep up appearances that I was doing my part to help out, but kept your progress slow." The Zeltron gave a smug smile. "That wasn't _too_ hard to do though."

Ja'Ina shot a pointed finger at Deoni. "It was _you_! You sabotaged our speeder's engines!"

Deoni laughed. "Very good! Your insight serves you well." She leaned in toward Ja'Ina. "Tell me; was it your idea to be sold to Mehar for all that money?"

Ja'Ina silently nodded.

Deoni sat back up and clapped her hands together. "Splendid! I must say I'm very impressed with your guile." She mockingly frowned at Ja'Ina. "It's a shame your plans didn't quite work out as you wanted."

"No thanks to your laser-brained troopers," Ja'Ina snapped back. She felt like spitting at the Imperial spy.

Deoni stood up. "Well, that's the way the meteor crumbles, sweetheart. And thanks to you, it's going to be a lot easier to catch Spiaré now. Even the Force won't be able to save him!" She turned to leave. "Enjoy your life of slavery, my dear Ja'Ina… however long your life ends up lasting."

Ja'Ina stood up and clenched her fists. She wanted to kill the back-stabbing Zeltron right there.

Deoni teasingly strutted to the door then spun back around to face the prisoner once more. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to the _Queen Valkyrie_ and _help_ our _friends_ with the repairs."

Deoni laughed as she was let out of the cell. Ja'Ina screamed and lunged towards the door, which slammed shut right in her face. She screamed again and pounded on the heavy door until her hands hurt.

Ja'Ina slid down to the floor and tucked into a tight ball against the door. She grabbed the end of the silver half-skirt on her slave costume and cried into it.


	11. Chapter 11

Author's note: I apologize again for the delay. I promise that it's not becoming a habit. Thank you for sticking with the story! I hope you're enjoying it...

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

Led by Juun, the procurement party quickly located and purchased the parts and supplies they needed to finish the repairs to the _Queen Valkyrie_. The pirates filled a repulsor trailer beyond capacity and carefully towed it with their speeder back to the ship. As they traveled through the streets of the capital city, they noticed even more Imperial troopers patrolling the area. While none of the troopers followed the women, it was now obvious they were closely watching them.

The Mirialan Teedai was quite unnerved by the sight of the Stormtroopers. "I'll be happy once we're back in space again! The Imps are too close for comfort."

At the controls of the speeder, Juun called back to her team. "Everyone, stay calm. We'll look suspicious if we're jittery."

The others silently nodded. However, they all kept their hands on their weapons just in case there would be any Imperial entanglements.

* * *

Kurloh tensely paced in her room, worried about Ja'Ina and Spiaré. She always knew something was not quite right with Deoni but would have never guessed her to be an Imperial agent. The whole thing angered the Togruta. Like Ja'Ina, she wished she could get a message to Spiaré through the Force. She knew she wasn't able to, and that frustrated her.

What frustrated Kurloh even more was that lately it was getting more difficult for her to stay in tune with the Force. She figured it was because of their recent tribulations, but she was still disappointed with herself. She felt that she should let nothing break that connection.

Even though she knew that the door was locked, Kurloh still tugged on the handle as she walked by. It made her feel a little better psychologically. Discouraged, she sat down hard on the bed with a frustrated grunt. She didn't know what happened to Ja'Ina and was worried about her.

Kurloh couldn't believe that Deoni worked for the Empire. Still she felt like kicking herself for not recognizing something was amiss through the Force. Kurloh wanted to tear Deoni apart with her bare hands for her treachery.

Kurloh took a deep breath and tried to reach out to Ja'Ina through the Force. The distraction of their dire situation made it difficult for her to concentrate. She wished she had had some formal training in the ways of the Jedi to help her overcome her impediment.

It was no use. After much effort, Kurloh could sense nothing. Beyond discouraged, she sighed loudly and threw herself down backwards on the bed.

* * *

A while later, aboard the _Queen Valkyrie_, Juun and the others finished off-loading the parts and supplies for the repairs. The crew immediately began their work in order to leave as quickly as possible.

In the hangar bay, Juun approached Myrrna. "I'm going to take my team back out to join Berini and the others in the rescue."

"No you won't," Myrrna snapped back. "Everyone is to stay on board to aid in the repairs."

"There're more than enough people to work on the repairs! I'm not going to sit around and do nothing!"

"If you don't cease your insubordination, I'll confine you to quarters and you'll do exactly nothing!"

The Twi'lek Taam joined the debate. "Juun's right, Myrrna. We'll be much more helpful out there than in here! You haven't seen it yet, but there're more Imperial troops out there than before! They'll only make the Captain's mission more difficult. She needs all the support she can get."

Myrrna grew angrier. "You too, Taam?! I don't believe this! The Captain's gone for a little while and everyone decides to ignore orders!"

The Theelin Marka walked up. "_Your_ inflexible interpretation of the orders! Berini would definitely want our help."

The remaining members of Juun's team, Yurlya and Teedai, also joined in and surrounded the Twi'lek First Officer.

Myrrna bared her teeth. "Is this mutiny? I will take you all down!"

"Like hell you will!" Yurlya barked.

Myrrna screamed and let loose a powerful punch that connected with Juun's face. Juun reeled from the attack while Marka, Yurlya and Taam joined in. Frightened, Teedai stayed back.

Taam shot a high kick, which Myrrna easily blocked with her forearm. Yurlya immediately followed with a leg sweep, which took the angered Twi'lek down. Myrrna immediately sprang back up and lunged for Yurlya. She tackled the Lorrdian and they both rolled onto the deck. Juun and Taam tried to wrestle the First Officer off their comrade, but the Twi'lek's strength allowed her to hold fast to Yurlya as she pummeled her with punch after punch.

Marka joined in to get Myrrna off of Yurlya. The three of them together were able to pull the livid Twi'lek off and the confused melee continued as they rolled around on the deck. With her face bloodied and bruised, Yurlya got up and worked with the others to restrain Myrrna. The wrestling match continued for a couple more minutes as one by one Myrrna was able to free herself from her adversaries.

"I'll kill you all!" she screamed at them.

Then, without warning Teedai shot Myrrna with a stun blast. The Twi'lek collapsed with a groan. Surprised, the others looked at the Mirialan, who shot a thumbs-up back at them.

Yurlya straddled Myrrna. "You guys get going! I don't know how long I can hold her off once she comes around!"

Juun put her hand on the Lorrdian's shoulder. "Thanks!" She turned to the rest of her team. "You heard her. Let's go, ladies!"

Juun, Marka, Taam and Teedai scrambled aboard their landspeeder and took off down the ramp. They carefully made their way out of the city and then opened up to full speed after Berini and the others.

* * *

A half-hour later, Deoni showed up at foot of the _Queen Valkyrie_'s ramp. She was admitted by Myrrna, who now sported a black eye and split lip from the earlier fight.

"It's about time _you_ showed up," the Twi'lek gruffly said.

Deoni smiled. "Well now, what happened to you?"

"Nothing of your concern." She turned her back on the Zeltron to walk back into the hangar. That was a big mistake.

Deoni quickly brandished a metallic hilt and ignited it. The characteristic snap-hiss sound accompanied the extension of a flexible length of crimson light. Before Myrrna could turn to see what Deoni was doing, the Zeltron struck her leg with the lightwhip. The strand of bright light wrapped around Myrrna's leg and burned into her flesh. She went down howling.

Deoni yelled back down the ramp, "Now!"

Immediately, a squad of Imperial Stormtroopers flooded into the hangar bay. They started firing at any and all pirates they saw. A couple of the crew immediately fell to the onslaught. Some of the pirates managed to return fire and take out some of the troopers. The exchange lasted only a brief time before all of the pirates in the hangar were either dead or incapacitated.

"That's enough, Sergeant," Deoni called out to the squad leader. "Scour the ship and bring everyone you find here."

"Yes, Mistress Vell!" The trooper replied.

The Stormtroopers began the task of rounding up the rest of the pirates. Deoni deactivated her lightwhip and strode up to Myrrna, who was trying to crawl away to sound a ship-wide alarm. The grievous wound inflicted by the Zeltron's weapon rendered her leg practically useless.

The Imperial agent stood over the Twi'lek. "Just where do you think you're going?"

Myrrna turned over to face her attacker. "What is the meaning of this?!" Then she began to choke as an unseen grip tightened around her throat.

"Don't you know it's impolite to answer a question with another question?" Deoni smiled as she tightened her grip on Myrrna through the Force.

Myrrna fought for breath and reflexively pulled at her neck as if to try to break the invisible strangle hold. She couldn't believe that Deoni was another Force user like Spiaré.

Deoni read Myrrna's feelings and shook her head. "No, my dear Twi'lek, I'm _not_ like Spiaré. He's weak, and his compassion will be his downfall."

The pressure against her trachea became too much for Myrrna and she lost consciousness. Deoni released her grip just before the point of lethality.

Deoni beckoned another trooper. "You! There's a young girl on the upper deck. Find her and bring her to me."

The Stormtrooper saluted and took two other men with him to find Aurelia.

* * *

Up in Berini's suite, Aurelia rested in the large, comfortable bed. She was very happy that they would be leaving soon. She also looked forward to seeing Soraa and Ja'Ina again. Berini dared not tell the teen that Ja'Ina and Kurloh had actually been captured by a slaver. The Captain knew that such knowledge would be traumatic for her, given her own past experiences as a slave.

A strange sound roused Aurelia from her near-sleep. She sat up in bed, clutching her soft bantha toy and yawned. She blinked a couple of times and looked towards the closed door that led to the lounge area.

The strange sounds became more audible. It was the sounds of heavy boot steps on the corridor deck, quickly approaching the suite's entrance. Aurelia jumped out of bed and crept towards the door to the lounge. She put her ear up to the door.

The sound of male voices amplified through helmet speakers could barely be heard. They came from right outside of the lounge.

"The door's locked," she could hear a voice say. "Cut it open!"

Aurelia jumped back away from the door in shock. She knew that there were intruders on board. Instinctively, the teen ran to the back corner of the bedroom and hit a hidden control. A secret hatch opened in the wall and Aurelia quickly went in. The hatch closed up so tightly that the troopers would have to know to look for it, and then use powerful scanning equipment to even hope to find it.

Inside, Aurelia slid a few meters down a chute into a hidden cell. This cell was just big enough for one person and just high enough for her to sit up in. It was well-shielded and had its own self-contained air and electrical systems. It was also stocked with enough food and water to last a few days. Berini created this small, hidden 'safe room' especially for Aurelia in case of emergency. It was here that the girl retreated to when the ship was under attack by the Imperial Star Destroyer at Olu-Dra.

Aurelia landed on the soft floor of the cell and the hatch to the chute closed up behind her. She tucked up tightly against the far wall and hugged her bantha toy. All she could do was wait until Berini came for her.

The Stormtroopers broke into the suite and entered the bedroom. They tore the room apart searching for Aurelia, but with no success. She could hear them from her hidden protected space. She trembled with fear but kept perfectly quiet, just like Berini had taught her.

* * *

"She's gotta be somewhere, Corporal," Deoni called into her comlink. "Find her!"

The Imperial agent turned back to the growing ranks of prisoners being gathered in the hangar bay. A wide smile of satisfaction beamed from her attractive crimson face as she scanned the group of pirates sitting on the deck. There were only eight still alive. Their dead crewmates were disgracefully tossed into a corner. Fitty was also among the survivors, letting out soft electronic whines.

Myrrna was slowly coming around following Deoni's assault through the Force. Yurlya aided her First Officer, their earlier altercation quickly forgotten.

Deoni stood before the group of prisoners. "Where is Berini?"

Her question was answered with silence.

Holding in her frustration, the Imperial agent walked over to Myrrna. She crouched down and got right in the Twi'lek's face. "Where's your captain, hmm?"

Myrrna looked at the Zeltron with a deadly hatred burning in her eyes. She answered Deoni by spitting in her face.

Surprising to the pirate, Deoni merely shook her head and smiled as she wiped the spit from her face. "Remember _Twi'lek_, I don't need the Force to kill you!" She snapped her fingers and motioned to a couple of Stormtroopers.

The troopers briskly walked over to her. One answered, "Yes, Mistress Vell?"

Deoni stood up. "This ship is equipped with a carbon freeze system. We'll take this Twi'lek here to be frozen as an example."

Myrrna was too weak from Deoni's attack to protest. Yurlya threw herself in between her First Officer and the troopers. "No!"

Myrrna weakly pushed Yurlya aside. "Stand down," she groaned. "I'll go with them. We don't need any more deaths here."

The Lorrdian hesitated then quietly complied. The Stormtroopers picked Myrrna up and dragged her away as her crewmates watched helplessly.

Deoni turned back to her prisoners. "I can only assume Berini left with the Jedi." She could sense the pirates' shock and smiled. "Yes, we know he's going to try to rescue your friends. We'll deal with them all when they reach the slaver's compound." She led the Stormtroopers away to encase Myrrna in carbonite.

Several more Stormtroopers stood guard on the landing pad around the _Queen Valkyrie_. No one who passed by dared come near the ship, knowing the consequences of interfering with the Empire's business.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

* * *

Berini turned the speeder down the street-way that entered into the city. Nothing yet seemed off, but that's what she didn't like. Spiaré continued to reach out through the Force to get a bead on Ja'Ina and Kurloh. From what he could tell, they were still in Mehar's compound or at least somewhere near it. But there was also something else…

Alarmed, Spiaré put his hand on Berini's shoulder. "Slow down. I sense a disturbance in the Force. We must keep our guard up."

Berini shot a glance at the Jedi and gave him a quick, slight nod. Her face conveyed intense vigilance. Soraa and Rann both undid their holster straps in case they needed to draw their weapons quickly. The group no longer cared about staying subtle; the pirates all looked around them in every direction as they traveled through the thickening traffic.

* * *

In her cell, Ja'Ina sat leaning against one of the corners feeling absolutely dejected. Her hope was quickly dwindling since she knew now that Spiaré was walking into a trap because of her and Kurloh. She also now knew that the _Queen Valkyrie_ was about to be taken by the Imperials, if it hadn't happened already. The young woman never felt so low in her life. She didn't even have the desire to meditate and try to reconnect with the Force.

It was cold inside the cell and Ja'Ina's mostly-sheer slave costume did little to protect her from the chill. She drew her knees up to her chest and rested her head on them. Since she didn't really sleep the night before, being merely unconscious the entire night after passing out from her terrible abuse, Ja'Ina felt exhausted. She started to doze off.

In the silence and near-sleep, Ja'Ina began to feel something – something through the Force. She fought her excitement in order to focus on the sensations. After a few moments, she realized it was Spiaré. The young woman worked hard to concentrate on the Jedi in the hopes she could communicate with him. She had to warn him to stay away.

Ja'Ina closed her eyes and focused on the Force harder than she ever had before. _Spiaré! Spiaré! Don't come for us! It's a trap! The Empire knows about you!_

The pressure on Ja'Ina's mind became too much and she broke off the connection. She opened her eyes and breathed heavily. In spite of the chilly air, she perspired from her intense effort. She hoped that she was able to get the message to him.

* * *

In the bedroom, Kurloh also felt Spiaré's presence through the Force. She could tell that he was checking on their presence in order to guide him to them. She tried hard to get her own warning out to the Jedi, but it was no good. Kurloh was able to communicate if she was in close proximity with her target, but Spiaré was too far away for her limited abilities.

The Togruta became angry and ran up to the door. She pulled and yanked on the handle with all of her strength.

"Let me outta here!" she screamed.

Kurloh began to frantically pound on the door and pulled on it again like she was a caged wild nexu, desperate to be freed. Sensing something in the hallway, she stopped and listened. Soft footsteps could be heard approaching. Kurloh stepped back from the door and crouched, ready to pounce on whoever would come in.

Sure enough, the lock turned, the handle moved and the door slowly opened. Tira stepped in and Kurloh nearly attacked her before she realized who it was.

Kurloh quickly stood up. "Tira!"

Tira shot an opened palm out to the Togruta and insistently spoke with a hushed voice. "Be quiet, or you'll attract the guards!"

"But-"

"We need to go now before anyone finds out! I know where Ina is!"

Tira took Kurloh's hand and led her out of the bedroom. The two slave girls quietly made their way through the hallway toward Ja'Ina's cell.

As they made their way to an intersection, the unmistakable shuffling sound of Gamorrean feet could be heard coming their way. The women flattened themselves against the wall right behind the corner with Kurloh in front. She was ready to spring on the guards should they be discovered wandering in the corridor.

The Gamorreans reached the corner and turned down the other direction away from the two women, much to their relief. Tira motioned to the Togruta to head down the hallway the guards had come from.

Tira and Kurloh quietly made their way down the hallway keeping eyes and ears out for any more guards. Their slave outfits fluttered behind them and their glossiness caught the light. The women wished that their costumes weren't so lustrous as it made it harder to be inconspicuous. As they neared Ja'Ina's cell, Kurloh's senses flashed a warning. She stopped dead in her tracks and held Tira back.

Confused, Tira whispered, "What is it?"

Kurloh left Tira there and crept up to the next corner. Tira closely watched the Togruta for a few tense moments. Then the sharp clacks of boot steps on the floor could be heard so Kurloh crouched near the corner and waited. Lieutenant Oabeck rounded the corner and found the Togruta right in front of him.

The Imperial officer started. "What the-"

Before Oabeck could finish his exclamation, Kurloh sprang up and delivered a powerful roundhouse kick to the head which knocked him to the floor, unconscious. Tira stood in amazement with the sight of Kurloh's combat prowess. Kurloh grabbed the Imperial officer and dragged him along as Tira led the way.

The slaves made their way to Ja'Ina's cell. Tira unlocked the heavy door as quietly as she could. She opened the door to find a surprised and relieved Ja'Ina inside. Kurloh dragged Oabeck inside and Tira closed the door. Kurloh dropped the officer and ran up to Ja'Ina. They hugged for a long time until Tira broke it up.

"This is wonderful," Tira said, "but we need to go now!"

The others agreed. They left Oabeck unconscious in the cell and locked the door.

* * *

Juun and her team raced down the road between the cities in their landspeeder. They were passing through a forested area broken up by the occasional meadow. The pirates were nervous every time they saw an airspeeder or other vessel streak overhead. They figured it was only a matter of time before they would tangle with Imperial forces.

At one point they entered another meadow that opened up wide in front of them. On the side of the road they saw two parked speeder bikes.

Teedai pointed at the bikes and called out, "Look!"

No one saw the Imperial biker scouts at first as they were sitting nearby, taking a break in the tall grass. At the sound of the Mirialan's voice, they both looked up. The scout's masks were raised, revealing their faces under their helmets. They quickly jumped up and closed their faceplates.

Marka and Taam raised their blasters and fired at the bikes before the riders could mount and give chase. The speeder bikes exploded and the blast threw the scouts backwards to the ground. The pirates sped by the mess as the scouts scrambled to their feet and fired at the landspeeder. Juun was able to juke their speeder to avoid the blasts. They made it to the far side of the meadow and disappeared into the trees.

Taam looked back behind them. "Well, they're going to be calling some friends after us now!"

"Let's just hope we can make it to the others first!" Juun pushed the landspeeder's accelerator to the limit.

* * *

Deoni headed back for Mehar's compound in anticipation of the capture of the Jedi Spiaré. She reveled in the notion that she would finally get the opportunity to deliver an actual Jedi, dead or alive, to the Emperor. There were so few Jedi left in the galaxy that not many hunters actually had success. Deoni knew that she would receive a handsome commendation and promotion for her grand achievement.

The Jedi hunter flew in a small, single-seat airspeeder along the direct road between the cities. She caught sight of black smoke rising from a meadow and flew in low to have a look. She saw two biker scouts standing next the wreckage of their bikes, waving their arms at her.

Deoni landed near the scouts and jumped out. The hilt of her lightwhip now prominently displayed on her belt.

The scouts ran up to her and snapped salutes. She barked, "Report!"

"A group of females in a landspeeder blasted our bikes as they sped by that way." The scout pointed down the road. "They were traveling at high velocity."

"Hmmm," Deoni spoke to herself out loud, "They must be going to join their friends." She nodded with a smile and turned back to the scout. "Stay here for now." She knew the scouts had no way to call for help since their comlinks were on the destroyed bikes, but didn't care.

"But Mistress-"

"You heard me, soldier! Keep an eye out for any other criminals and deal with them accordingly."

The scout snapped another salute. "Yes Mistress!"

Deoni got back in her airspeeder and flew off, leaving the biker scouts behind.

The first scout drew his small blaster pistol from its boot holster, the standard issue for scout troopers. "What the hell are we supposed to do, throw these at them?"

The second scout merely shrugged in reply.

* * *

As they made their way through the city's streets, Berini and her team saw an Imperial presence heavier than that at the capital city. However, the troopers did nothing to hinder their progress.

Spiaré was concerned. "I should have come alone. This is likely a trap laid out specifically for me. I'm putting you in needless risk."

Berini chuckled. "Don't flatter yourself, Master Jedi. We have just as much stake in this as you do."

Spiaré flashed a raised eyebrow at the pirate captain.

With their speeder parked a couple of streets away from Mehar's compound, Berini, Spiaré, Soraa and Rann carefully made their way there on foot. The pirates had their weapons ready to draw at a moment's notice. Rann had assembled her sniper rifle and slung it onto her back. Spiaré kept his cloak on.

The team got to the first street and two biker scouts sped by on their speeder bikes. Luckily, the Imperial scouts were going too fast to notice them.

Berini peered around the corner up and down the street and saw only light but normal traffic with no troopers in sight. She motioned the others to enter the street. The group walked out like nothing was out of the ordinary and followed Spiaré towards Mehar's compound.

Soraa was feeling confident. "If all Mehar has is his Gamorreans, we should be just fine!"

Rann smiled. "Yeah, that's right!" She high-fived Soraa.

Spiaré looked back at the young women with a frown. "Don't be so careless! We must assume that we'll have Imperial forces waiting for us as well."

Rann pumped her fist. "All the better! I'm looking forward to taking some of those karking scums down!"

Berini waved her finger at Rann. "That's enough! Spiaré's right. I don't want any unnecessary heroics from either of you. Is that understood?"

Soraa and Rann replied in unison, "Yes Captain."

Berini's comlink rang out. She directed the team to a side street before answering. "Berini here."

"Juun here, Captain."

"Ahh, good to hear from you, my dear. What's your status?"

"We completed procurement and brought everything back to the _Valkyrie_. We're en route to meet up with you."

"Negative, Juun. Return to the ship, that's an order."

There was a moment of silence before Juun replied. "Uhhh… that may be a bit difficult, Captain. The Empire's swarming the capital and we had a run-in with a couple of Imperial troopers on the road a few minutes ago."

"Blast it!" Berini rubbed her forehead, feeling a headache coming on. "How's the ship?"

"She was fine when we left, though we had to go _through_ Myrrna in order to leave."

Berini gave a groaning sigh. "We'll address that after we get back. We'll give you our coordinates when we reach our destination shortly. Meet us there."

"Yes Captain!"

Berini closed communication with Juun and then hailed the ship. "Berini to _Queen Valkyrie_, come in." She waited a moment for a response, but there was none. "Berini to Gartia!" Still no answer. "Berini to Myrrna! …To anybody!"

Frustrated, Berini forcefully punched the control to deactivate the comlink.

Rann stepped up to the Captain. "What does it mean?"

"I fear the worst, but there's nothing we can do from here. We just need to focus on what we're here for right now."

For the first time, Spiaré felt real fear emanate from the pirate captain. "Don't worry, Berini. Everything will be okay." His voice exuded a nurturing calmness.

Berini picked up on his tone and her expression relaxed. "I hope you're right, Master Jedi…"


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

* * *

Deoni arrived at Mehar's compound and prepared to receive Spiaré and his companions. She was not yet aware of the escape of Kurloh, Ja'Ina and Tira, or that Lieutenant Oabeck had been locked in Ja'Ina's cell. Therefore, she had no reason to reach out through the Force to find them, nor did Mehar to activate the slaves' implant controls.

The Imperial agent coordinated the deployment of the Stormtroopers throughout the compound. This included stationing them only inside the walls as to avoid warning the Jedi before he even got inside.

Deoni could hardly contain her excitement. Soon the Jedi would be in her custody and she would deliver him to Imperial High Command, maybe even personally to the Emperor himself!

Through the Force, Deoni reached out to sense Spiaré's presence. He was very close, and thus close to his demise. She smiled with intense satisfaction as the Stormtroopers moved into their positions.

* * *

Mehar sat nervously behind his desk in his office with Dun'ii at his side. Her presence usually gave him great pleasure, but this time there was nothing she could do for him to ease his mind. For the first time in his life he felt real fear – fear of the uncertainty of the situation. The slaver had always done his best to avoid any interaction with the Empire and he wasn't sure what they would end up doing while they were here.

Mehar knew full well the extreme measures the Empire took to maintain control over the galaxy. Wild thoughts of his imprisonment or even his death circled in his mind. He made sure to give the Imperials his full cooperation in the hopes that he and his operation would come out relatively unscathed once this unpleasant business was finished. He occasionally glanced at the security holo-monitors to keep an eye on what was happening around his compound. The slaver had two of his best guards outside of his office door. But he knew that the Gamorreans were nothing compared to the might of the Imperial military.

Mehar tensely looked at Dun'ii and took a puff of his spice cigar, hoping that it would help him to relax.

* * *

Down the street from Mehar's compound, Spiaré felt Deoni searching for him through the Force. He smiled to himself. _So you're a Force user. You were wise to hide your abilities from me. _While the Jedi was partly amused by this revelation, he was also disappointed with himself for not sensing it before. It was now apparent to him that the Zeltron had used the Force to conceal her true nature from other Force-sensitives. Spiaré was also worried since he didn't know what else Deoni was capable of, especially with Ja'Ina and Kurloh somewhere still inside the compound. She could turn out to be a very dangerous adversary. He decided to keep his discovery to himself for the time being.

The team made it to the compound, right around the corner of another building across the street. Berini contacted Juun and gave her the coordinates. The Captain hoped that they would arrive soon, as every passing minute was precious.

Berini turned to her team. "Alright, here we are. First up… Rann, I want you to go to the roof of this building and set up shop. I want you to report the number of unfriendlies you can see, and prepare to start picking them off."

"Yes, Captain! I hope they're all Stormtroopers!" Rann grinned.

"We don't know that for sure. You must focus on all enemies inside, not just Imperial troops, understand?"

"Yeah, yeah, I do."

Berini continued. "Good! Now then, we have the main entrance in sight. Spiaré, is there any other way in?"

The Jedi replied, "I don't know. I didn't have the opportunity to search earlier."

Soraa took a look. "Well, it doesn't look like any goons are outside the big wall. Maybe we should just scale it."

"We mustn't be too hasty, Soraa," Spiaré warned. "Just because we don't see anyone doesn't mean they're not there. Anyone climbing the wall will be vulnerable to attack."

"Well, Master Jedi, do you sense any enemies outside the wall?" Berini asked.

"The Force doesn't work quite like that, Berini. I sense danger concentrated in Mehar's compound, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the source of danger is only within the wall."

Berini sighed. "We'll just have to keep our eyes open then. Soraa will come with me, Spiaré, you'll go alone." She turned to the rest of the team. "Everyone tune into our usual encoded comlink frequency."

Just then, Juun and her team arrived, much to the others' relief. "Sorry we're late. We ran into some old friends."

"Cute," Berini replied. "You're just in time. Taam, come with us. Juun, Marka, Teedai, you head around the far side. We'll flank them and hopefully find a way to rush them from both sides."

Berini handed a spare comlink to Spiaré, who refused. "Suit yourself, Jedi."

Spiaré shook his head. "Don't misunderstand me. I can't have any extra distractions. I'll find you once we're all inside."

The pirates all inserted earpieces connected to their comlinks. Rann left for the roof of the building.

Spiaré started for the compound. "Wait for my signal."

The lady pirates all nodded in response.

* * *

Tira, Kurloh and Ja'Ina were having an increasingly difficult time sneaking around the corridors without being spotted. Stormtroopers were everywhere as they moved to their assigned positions in preparation to take Spiaré and the pirates who accompanied him. Unfortunately, the troopers moved in groups of at least three which discouraged the escapees from attacking them. Unable to get to an exit, the three women ducked into a small storage closet.

Ja'Ina closed the door behind them. "So what's your plan, Tira?"

"Uhh-ummm," the young woman stammered.

Kurloh looked at Tira with a raised eyebrow. "So, you don't have any ideas about getting outta here?"

Tira bowed her head. "I'm sorry. I'm not very good at such things."

"Oh brother," the Togruta said as she palmed her forehead.

Ja'Ina patted Tira's shoulder. "Don't worry about it, Tira." She turned to Kurloh. "We'll just have to feel our way out through the Force."

"Ina!" Kurloh snapped, whipping her head around to face the young woman with her head tails-nearly hitting her comrades. She didn't want to share their secret with someone they barely knew.

Tira's eyes became wide with wonderment. "You mean you have the Force?"

"Yes, we both do," Ja'Ina replied. "Only a few people know about it, so don't say anything."

"Wow! I mean, yeah I won't blow your secret. I've heard of the Force, but I thought only Jedi had it. And there aren't even any Jedi around anymore."

Ja'Ina smiled. "No, Tira. Jedi aren't the only ones, they've just had formal training on how to use it. And there's at least _one_ Jedi left in the galaxy."

After a moment, Tira made the connection. "Your friend! He's coming to rescue us, isn't he?"

Kurloh proudly nodded. "Yep, and our crewmates with him."

"I hope so," Ja'Ina said with a sigh. "Deoni returned to the ship some time ago."

Kurloh's shoulders slumped. "Blast it! The karking Imps have probably taken over the _Valkyrie _by now! There may be no one coming for us…"

Ja'Ina closed her eyes and reached out through the Force. After a few moments, she spoke. "No… Spiaré _is_ here, and he's not alone!"

The Togruta perked up. "Who's with him?"

"I can't tell exactly." Ja'Ina looked at both of her comrades. "But we'll just stay put for now and see how things develop. We should be able to exploit the situation at the right moment."

A pained expression came to Tira's face. "As long as we or that Imperial officer aren't missed…"

Ja'Ina gave the woman a reassuring smile. "What's done is done. Let's just hope that we have enough time before anyone notices our handiwork."

* * *

Spiaré carefully made his way over to the wall of Mehar's compound. No one was within sight, not even occasional street traffic. The Jedi flattened himself against the wall and looked up. He saw a small, spherical security droid hovering above the top of the front wall near him. Using the Force, he quickly pulled the droid to the ground and crushed it.

Rann came over the pirates' com channel. "I'm in position. Sure enough, the courtyard's crawling with several Gamorreans and at least two-dozen Stormtroopers, all well-armed."

Taam grinned. "I'm sure she's happy about that."

Berini swatted her hand at the Twi'lek. "Cut the chatter!"

Juun put her hand over her mouth to curb her laughter as she watched for Spiaré's signal. She saw him reach the far corner of the wall. He then indicated that he was heading around to the back of the compound.

Juun called back to her team mates, "Okay everyone, time to go!"

"Rann, we're moving out," Berini said into her comlink. "Stand by."

"I'm ready to start plugging Imperial scum on your order," Rann replied.

On the roof, Rann positioned her T-28 sniper blaster rifle on its bipod at the edge. She lay down on her belly and took the grip then eyed her targets through the sight and released the safety. Her heart pounded in her chest in anticipation of the action. The afternoon heat of Orvax Prime felt good on Rann's back and her bared flesh-and-blood leg.

Berini, Soraa and Taam made their way along one side of the compound, while Juun, Marka and Teedai went down the other. The two teams were somewhat shielded from outside eyes due to the thick stands of trees that surrounded Mehar's compound. Unfortunately, neither team found secondary gates or doors into the compound as they moved along the walls.

Spiaré quickly and silently made his way to the far side of the compound. Like the others, he found no other entrances through the wall. While there was a large, open courtyard in front of the main building, the rear wall was much closer. Spiaré looked around and saw more security droids. He dispatched them in the same manner as the earlier one.

Once he was confident the coast was clear, the Jedi Force-jumped a few meters up to the top of the wall. As soon as he got there, he felt a warning of danger through the Force. Spiaré looked up and saw a Stormtrooper looking out a fourth-storey window. He watched the trooper intently until he was spotted by him.

Before the trooper could call out or raise his weapon, Spiaré grabbed a hold of him through the Force and flung him out the window. The Stormtrooper's armor was not enough to save him from the impact of the fall. Almost immediately, a second trooper poked his helmeted head out the window to see what had happened to the first. Spiaré repeated his action and the Stormtrooper landed next to his partner, also dead.

The Jedi jumped up the side of the building and entered through that same window. Lucky for him, there were no more Stormtroopers within sight. Spiaré lowered the cowl of his cloak and began his search for Kurloh and Ja'Ina through the Force.

* * *

Berini and her team waited at the wall for a while, trying to figure out what to do. The pirates stood silently and looked around.

Just then, Soraa noticed another spherical security droid panning their direction from the top of the wall. Reflexively, she drew her blaster and fired at droid, which loudly exploded in a shower of sparks.

Berini yanked Soraa's weapon arm down. "By Stars' End! What are you doing?! You want them to find us?"

Just then alarm sirens sounded from within the compound and the rest of the pirates brandished their blasters. From the roof of the building on the opposite side of the street, Rann watched the whole situation unfold.

"What the hell's going on down there?" She called through the comlink. "Whatever you destroyed stirred up the guards and Imps like a nest of angry blood hornets! They're heading your way!"

"Never mind," Berini replied. "Lay down a suppressing fire so we can get in!"

"Alright!" Rann smiled. "It's about time," she said to herself.

Rann switched her blaster rifle to full-automatic mode and let loose. She sprayed the ranks of Stormtroopers and Gamorreans alike, cutting many of them down before they knew what happened. The troopers stopped their advance towards Berini's team and tried to find their mystery assailant. The scene in the courtyard was pure chaos.

Rann continued her assault. She yelled into her com headset, "Everyone! I think I've got their attention now, so you better get your choobies over that wall! I don't know how long I have before I need to bail out!"

Several voices came over the com channel, answering, "Roger!"

* * *

From inside his office, Mehar heard the unmistakable sounds of the battle. He let out a screeching snort and dove under his desk. Dun'ii quickly joined him. The intercom rang on his desk. Mehar fearfully and slowly reached up to activate the communicator.

Not leaving his place, he answered. "Y-yes?"

It was Deoni. "Vell here. Why aren't you here?"

"W-w-well I-I thought it'd b-be best if-f I s-s-stayed in m-m-my office!"

"Nonsense! Do you know where your pirate slaves are?"

Deoni's question confused Mehar. "I-In their r-rooms of course!"

"You fool! I assure you, they're not!"

"W-whaaa?"

"Find them! My troopers don't have time for such things!" Deoni closed the connection before Mehar could reply.


	14. Chapter 14

_Author's Note: First, thank you for continuing to read my story! As you can see, things are really amped up now as the end of the story approaches. It's amazing to look back on how far Soraa and Ja'Ina have come since we first met them on their backwater home world. I'd love to hear from you, whether it's a review, opinion or just discussion via PM. :-) Now, without further ado..._

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen**

* * *

"Damned useless worm!" Deoni seethed. "I should have known we couldn't count on that slaver!"

The Imperial agent stood outside of Ja'Ina's former cell, accompanied by Commander Pavan, Lieutenant Durrn and a dazed Lieutenant Oabeck, who was just freed from the cell. A couple of Stormtroopers stood by at attention.

Deoni locked her eyes with Pavan's. "Ja'Ina and Kurloh are still around here somewhere. They must have gotten help, probably from that other slave girl. Those pirates are Force-sensitives. Find them, Commander!" She really did not trust Mehar's guards to apprehend the fugitives.

Pavan bowed his head slightly to the Zeltron. "Yes, Agent Vell." Deoni's claim about Ja'Ina and Kurloh unnerved him, but he didn't outwardly express it. She neglected to share that small detail with him and as the leader of the operation he didn't appreciate being kept out of the loop.

Deoni stormed away from the officers and troopers. She knew that Spiaré was near, likely inside the building. She detached her lightwhip's hilt from her belt as she walked off to find the Jedi.

* * *

From inside the cramped storage closet, Tira, Ja'Ina and Kurloh could hear the fighting between their comrades and the troopers.

Kurloh turned an ear upward. "It's only a matter of time now."

Ja'Ina didn't say anything. She felt a dark disturbance in the Force, a sensation unfamiliar to her. She focused more on it to figure out who or what it was coming from.

The Togruta tugged the young woman's arm. "Hey, Ina… You okay?"

Ja'Ina continued to focus; she did not notice Kurloh's touch. The sensation began to feel somehow familiar as it slowly manifested itself in her mind. Then the Force spoke to her as a whisper on a breeze.

"It's Deoni!" Ja'Ina yelped.

Kurloh looked at her. "_What's_ Deoni?"

"She's a Force user as well! Only, I sense the dark side of the Force surrounding her!" Ja'Ina looked at her companions, her deep dark eyes conveying great concern.

Kurloh blurted out a Togruti expletive.

The talk about a 'dark side' worried Tira. "What do we do?"

Kurloh reached for the door handle. "More like, what _don't_ we do? We don't wait around anymore. We've gotta get out of here and help Spiaré!"

Ja'Ina took Tira's hand. "I agree. Let's go."

The three women left the storeroom to see what they could do.

* * *

Rann continued her onslaught against the guards and Imperial Stormtroopers in the courtyard. The troopers realized where the attack was coming from and began to return fire. Many troopers fell to her blasts, but more streamed out into the courtyard. She hoped she could give her comrades the time they needed to safely get inside.

The troopers' blasts hit the building's edge right in front of Rann. She ducked down to avoid getting hit by shrapnel. She already went through two power packs in her rifle and was about to need a third.

Just then, blasts rained down on Rann from above. She rolled away from her rifle to find three Imperial scout troopers bearing down on her on speeder bikes. She rolled onto her back and drew her blaster pistol. She easily picked one of the scouts right off of his bike, which continued on without him over the edge of the roof. The other two continued their attack, and she scrambled to her feet to escape back into the building.

* * *

Berini, Taam and Soraa had made it over the wall via a rope and grappling hook. At nearly the same time, Juun, Marka and Teedai made it over the wall on the opposite side. Rann had stopped firing, but the Stormtroopers and Gamorreans were still in disarray.

The pirates took advantage of the confusion and attacked. The firefight was brief and the remaining guards and troopers were dispatched with little trouble.

Teedai looked up towards Rann's position on the nearby building. She noticed the speeder bikes landing on the roof. "Captain! Rann's in trouble!"

"She can take care of herself!" Berini replied. "We need to focus on our job here! Juun, take your team into the left entrance, we'll take the right! Keep the com channel open!"

Juun, Teedai and Marka carefully entered Mehar's headquarters. They rounded the first corner and startled two Gamorreans armed with vibro-axes. The guards raised their weapons with surprising speed, causing the pirates to jump back from them. Juun and Marka fired their blasters at the porcine beings. Juun's shot hit her target's vibro-axe, which broke apart in his hands, whereas Marka's blast hit the other guard squarely in the chest. He went down with a thud.

Just as the first guard started to lunge for Juun, Teedai fired and hit him in the gut. He collapsed to the floor. Juun and Marka looked at their normally-timid comrade with much surprise.

Juun gave the Mirialan a thumbs-up. "Thanks, Teedai!"

Teedai proudly smiled back. The trio continued on down the corridor.

Berini, Soraa and Taam were not as fortunate. As soon as they entered the building, they met with a group of Stormtroopers. The women ducked behind opposing corners of the intersecting corridor and a firefight ensued. The troopers kept the pirates pinned-down with Soraa on one side and Berini and Taam on the other. The pirates knew that Imperial reinforcements would likely join the fight soon.

Soraa called across to Berini, "We gotta do something! Now!"

"We need an opening!" Berini called back.

Soraa growled in frustration as she stayed back away from the troopers' corridor. After a couple of moments, an idea came to her. Without saying a word, she drew Ja'Ina's cortosis scimitar with one hand and held a blaster in the other.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Berini yelled.

"Just watch!"

Soraa darted out in front of the Stormtroopers. She dropped to one knee and held the sword up in front of her. The troopers concentrated their fire on the young woman as she stood her ground in the middle of the corridor.

Soraa returned fire and immediately felled one of the troopers. A couple of blasts hit the sword, which glowed red as it absorbed the energy. She struggled to keep a hold of the scimitar with each blast's impact. Berini and Taam watched dumbfounded by the sight of a primitive weapon standing up to blaster fire. The remaining Stormtroopers were also confused by the scimitar's ability and Soraa took advantage of the instant she was given to take them down in rapid succession.

The young woman stood up, panting. "Here's your opening, Captain!" She sheathed the sword.

Berini laughed, "Well I'll be a lizard-monkey's aunt! Let's go, girls!"

* * *

Rann ran back down the stairs as fast as she could. Unfortunately, her speed was somewhat inhibited by her cybernetic leg, which frustrated her. Before she was maimed by the Imperials, she was very agile and could have quickly jumped down flight after flight of the stairs with ease. To make matters worse, the point where the mechanical leg was attached to her flesh-and-blood body began to hurt more with the strain.

Rann heard the scout troopers quickly coming down the stairs after her, so she drew her blaster pistol in anticipation of a shootout. She kept pushing herself faster down the steps, trying to not fall. She felt very unsteady on her mismatched legs and the pain from her artificial leg continued to ramp up.

"Stang," Rann muttered. "This is not good!" She stumbled and nearly tumbled down the rest of the flight.

Rann grabbed hold of the handrail to stop her fall and dropped her blaster pistol to the landing below. She cried out, "No!"

The scout troopers continued to gain on the pirate. She could hear one of them call out, "There she is!"

Rann limped down to the landing and retrieved her blaster. She backed herself up against the wall and held her weapon ready with both hands, pointed back up the flight. She hoped she could be fast enough to hit both troopers as they headed around the corner before they could do anything. Beads of sweat formed on Rann's forehead and she breathed heavily. Her heart pounded in her chest as she listened to the troopers' boot steps on the flight right above her.

The boot steps stopped at the top of the flight in front of Rann, but at the base of the flight above, just out of her line of sight. _C'mon, I dare ya…_

Like a direct response to her thought, a helmeted head popped out around the corner. She reflexively squeezed off a shot; the blast caught the trooper right in the faceplate and he collapsed, lifeless.

Rann could hear the other trooper exclaim, "What the!"

She held steady, waiting for the second trooper to peer out. Nothing happened. Nobody moved. All was silent. Slowly, Rann lowered her blaster and leaned in to try to get a look.

Then the trooper reached his arm around and lobbed a thermal detonator down the flight at Rann. She made a dive down next flight just as the detonator exploded where she stood only a moment before. The force of the blast threw the woman further through the air. She hit the landing hard and slammed into the wall with a loud groan.

Dazed, Rann lay on the landing for a moment. She shook the confusion from her head and tried to sit up. Her cybernetic leg bore the brunt of the explosion and didn't respond very well to her commands. The leg of her pant was torn, revealing the damaged mechanisms beneath. She struggled to pull herself up and sat up against the wall with a grunt. As Rann reached for her blaster, the scout trooper appeared at the top of the flight with his blaster trained on her.

"Stay where you are!" the trooper commanded.

Rann angrily put her hands up. He carefully made his way down the steps, never taking his aim off of the pirate. Other than an occasional twitch from her damaged artificial leg, Rann did not move. The scout trooper stopped at the foot of the steps and stood over his captive.

The trooper looked at Rann as she sat in front of him. He noticed her real flesh-and-blood leg, which was bared by the high cut of the pant's left leg. He admired the sight of it for a few moments. Then he noticed her other leg, twitching and sparking from within the pant's full-length right leg. He focused on it for a moment and realized it was mechanical. He pointed at it.

"What is _that_?" Even through the speaker in his helmet, the intense disgust could still be heard in his voice. "_What the hell are you_?"

Rann's anger welled up inside of her. The Imperials did this to her; it was because of their sadistic torture that she lost her real right leg.

"You're not _human_!" He aimed his pistol right at Rann's head, ready to put her down.

The scout trooper's disgusted comment was his final mistake. Rann struggled for a long time to feel human again after receiving her cybernetic limb. Intense rage flashed in her face and she mustered the strength to sweep her real leg into his. Caught off guard, he toppled down onto the landing next to her. Before he could recover, she retrieved her blaster and loosed numerous blasts into his chest point-blank, screaming the entire time. When the blaster's power pack was spent, she let go of the trigger and lowered it toward the floor.

"I'm more human than _you_, filthy sithspawn!" Rann spat at the recently-deceased trooper.

She holstered her blaster and carefully pulled herself up using the handrail. The robotic leg shuddered as she tried to put her weight onto it. The damaged servos whined loudly in protest and sparks shot out through the holes torn in the pant leg. Rann had to get down the rest of the way with her nearly-useless mechanical leg. She almost wanted to just cut it off and be done with it. But through the frustration, Rann remembered what Berini did to help her get the leg and return to a relatively normal life. She decided to keep it after all, grateful for the independence the mechanical leg had given her. After all, it could be repaired and made good as new.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

* * *

The two Gamorrean guards fell simultaneously as Kurloh and Ja'Ina connected flying kicks to their horned heads. Tira stayed back as her friends each grabbed a vibro-axe from the unconscious guards.

Ja'Ina smiled as she felt the weapon's balance in her hands. "This is more like it!"

"I'd rather have a blaster myself," Kurloh complained.

"It's better than nothing! C'mon, let's go find Spiaré!"

The three women raced through the halls, with Kurloh and Ja'Ina following the sensations through the Force in order to reach Spiaré before Deoni did. The sounds of the firefights in the lower levels carried through the corridors. The majority of the Stormtroopers were down on the lower floors to keep the others from getting further inside while Deoni confronted the Jedi. Kurloh and Ja'Ina could hear the fighting intensify and worried that their friends were in serious danger of defeat.

Ja'Ina sensed their friends' peril and stopped running. "Ku, we gotta help the others!"

Kurloh sensed the same thing. "I know, but what about Spiaré?"

"I think he can take care of himself. At least I _hope_ he can."

Tira realized where they were. She pointed at a nearby door. "That's Mehar's office!"

Ja'Ina shuddered with the memory of her torture at the slaver's hands.

Kurloh put a reassuring hand on her arm. "It's okay, Ina. He's probably not even there."

Ja'Ina's fear transformed into anger, which began to build inside her. She narrowed her dark eyes and spoke with a low voice. "No… He's there… And he's scared…"

"Well, let's go get him while he's down," the Togruta suggested.

Tira stepped in front of the others with her arms extended out to her sides to block their way. "No! Don't! He'll kill us all!"

Ja'Ina pushed the young woman's arm down. "Ku's right. We should take advantage of this opportunity. The last thing we need is to have him running around to sneak up on us later on." Ja'Ina raised her weapon, ready to use it.

Kurloh sensed the rising anger in her friend. "Ina, be careful! You're treading a dangerous path!"

Ja'Ina's voice remained intensely subdued. "I don't care anymore. This pile of slime needs to be dealt with. Now."

Tira stepped aside and let the pirates approach the door. Kurloh and Ja'Ina nodded to each other and had their weapons ready.

Ja'Ina tried to open the door, but it was locked. She quickly activated her vibro-axe and swung into the door. The weapon cut through the door like it was a sheet of plasti-film. The three former slaves rushed inside to find the Kusolan and his consort cowering under the desk.

"Mehar! Get your filthy hide out here!" Ja'Ina yelled, seething.

Mehar slowly peered up over the desktop. "J-Ja'Ina?" He stood up with Dun'ii tightly clutching his arm, trembling. "I'm so glad it's you!"

Kurloh bared her sharp canine teeth. "What a load of bantha dung!"

"No, really! The Empire has taken over everything! They want your Jedi friend and they'll do anything to get him. They'll even destroy my operation!" Mehar slowly stepped out from behind his desk.

Ja'Ina's eyes narrowed. "You make a deal with the devil, you get what you deserve," she sneered in reply. She noticed the implant control sitting on the desktop and motioned with the vibro-axe, which hummed ominously. "Sit over by the monitors. Now!"

Mehar hesitated. Ja'Ina could sense his malicious thoughts.

"You reach for that control and you'll lose your _other_ hand!"

Mehar growled. "You'll never get outta here alive!"

Kurloh chuckled. "Obviously, you've never dealt with pirates before!"

The slaver angrily snorted. "You're not pirates! You're _slaves_!"

Ja'Ina stepped towards the Kusolan and raised her vibro-axe. "Sit by the monitors! You too, Dun'ii!"

Mehar and Dun'ii quickly sat in the chairs at the holomonitor console. The implant control was too far for him to reach.

Kurloh looked at one of monitors and saw Berini, Taam and Soraa pinned down by Stormtroopers in a corridor. In another, she saw Juun, Marka and Teedai in a similar situation. "Ina, look here! We gotta help them!"

In the moment of distraction, Mehar retrieved a hidden blaster from under the console. He grabbed Dun'ii and pointed it at her head. The Twi'lek frightfully shrieked.

"Dun'ii!" Tira cried out.

Kurloh and Ja'Ina turned to face the slaver with their weapons raised.

"Ah ah ahhh," Mehar snorted. "Keep back or I'll kill this slave!"

Dun'ii couldn't believe what she just heard. "What do you mean? I thought I was your partner! Your… companion!"

Mehar laughed with a snort. "My dear, you're my property! My plaything! I can do whatever I want with you!"

For so long, Dun'ii had convinced herself that she really wasn't a slave. But now there was no mistaking she was never really free. She hung her head in shame in believing that Mehar really cared for her, trusted her. As far as Dun'ii was concerned, her life was forfeit, and she didn't care anymore.

The Twi'lek yelled to the pirates, "Just kill him!"

Tira couldn't take it anymore. Even though she despised the 'recruitment' work she was forced to do with Dun'ii, she still felt some level of camaraderie with her.

Tira lunged for Mehar. "No! Don't!"

The slaver pointed the blaster at Tira and fired. The bolt struck her in the abdomen and she went down. Kurloh ran over to help her.

In that instant, Dun'ii punched Mehar in the face and snatched the pistol from his hand. She jumped back to behind the desk beyond his reach. Shaking, she pointed the weapon at her master. Ja'Ina stood firm, unsure of what the Twi'lek would do.

Dun'ii started crying. "Damn you, Mehar… Damn you, low-life scum!"

Mehar smugly chuckled. "My dear, nothing in this galaxy is lower than a slave like you!"

Dun'ii screamed and fired the blaster wildly at the Kusolan. The blasts struck him and the holomonitors behind him several times. The monitors exploded in showers of sparks and debris. Mehar's fat, lifeless body slid out of the chair down to the floor.

Ja'Ina cautiously stepped forward. "Dun'ii-"

The agitated Twi'lek whipped around and pointed the blaster at Ja'Ina. "Stay back!"

The young woman stopped and deactivated the vibro-axe. She slowly placed it onto the floor. "Okay, it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you."

The Twi'lek trembled and sobbed. "L-leave m-me alone! Please…"

Tira struggled to sit up. The wound in her abdomen was serious, but not fatal. She strained to speak. "Dun'ii. It's over. You're free now." She motioned to Kurloh and Ja'Ina. "These people can help you."

"No they can't! There's nothing left for someone like me! I'm…I'm _worthless_!"

Ja'Ina felt Dun'ii's intense pain and despair. "But you're wrong! You can have a fresh start. Our ship has many women who were once in the same place as you. Now they live free lives as equals. You can too!"

Dun'ii didn't listen. "Leave me alone… Leave me… alone!"

Without warning, Dun'ii turned to the large window behind her and blasted it. She burst through the broken glass and fell several stories to her death.

Tira cried out, "No!"

Ja'Ina ran to the window and looked down. She saw Dun'ii's body splayed on the ground far below. Ja'Ina's heart broke for the Twi'lek. Tira started crying and Kurloh held her. Ja'Ina joined them in the caring embrace.

* * *

Spiaré walked alone through the corridor with his cloak waving majestically behind him, a reminder of the proud order he had sprung from. He had gone down one level on his way to join the pirates. He knew, however, that Deoni was going to intercept him so he went down no further. He didn't want to involve any of the others in his confrontatation with the Zeltron.

The corridors on this level were void of any Stormtroopers or Gamorreans as they were occupied with the intruders on the first level. The Jedi sensed a disturbance in the Force, a disturbance he recognized as Deoni's presence. He followed it.

The sensations led Spiaré to the dining hall, and he kept his guard up as he entered. Immediately, he was assailed by a squad of Stormtroopers led by Lieutenant Oabeck.

With Jedi reflexes, Spiaré pulled out his lightsaber and ignited it. He deflected the blasts with its amber blade, returning some of them to his adversaries with lethal results. Spiaré flew at the remaining troopers and launched into a spin, slashing every Imperial within reach of his weapon. Oabeck stood back behind the troopers during the brief fight, but he was now the only one left facing the Jedi.

Oabeck held his blaster pistol up towards Spiaré, uncontrollably shaking in fear. The Jedi smiled and feigned a lunge toward his enemy. The startled Imperial officer reflexively fired at Spiaré, who easily dodged the blast.

Using the Force, Spiaré picked up Oabeck and tossed him into one of the windows. The lieutenant screamed as he flew through the window's glass.

A warning hit the back of the Jedi's mind and he spun around to see Deoni standing in the doorway several meters away. He noticed the gleaming hilt of her weapon hanging from her belt.

"Hello, Spiaré! It's good to see you again! I've been chasing you for a long time, Jedi."

"And I thought you were only interested in me for my good looks," Spiaré said with a smile.

"Very funny." Deoni reached out an open hand towards him. "If you come with me now, I promise no harm will come to you."

"You're a very silly girl if you really think I'd believe that. I've lived through the Purge. I know your people have been hunting Jedi down for nearly twenty years now! You're not going to stop now."

"I suppose that's true. You can't blame me for trying, can you?"

"I forgive you for making a fool of yourself!"

"You're the fool for daring to stand against the might of the Empire!"

"If it is foolish to stand up for freedom and democracy, then I'm proud to be the biggest fool in the galaxy."

Deoni shook her head. "This talk is meaningless. Let's do this."

Spiaré shed his cloak. "If you insist."

The Zeltron detached the hilt from her belt and ignited her weapon. Spiaré was shocked to see that it was not a lightsaber, but a lightwhip. Deoni sensed his surprise and relished it.

Spiaré raised an eyebrow. "So is this the standard issue for Jedi hunters?"

Deoni laughed. "I assure you, Jedi, it is not!" She demonstrated by gracefully swinging the whip around and striking the floor in front of her. Sparks flew from the strike, which created a glowing gash in the otherwise smoothly-polished stone floor.

Spiaré raised his amber-bladed lightsaber, ready for combat. He had to fight to control his trepidation toward the situation. He had never even seen a lightwhip before, and had never gone up against another Force user in full combat, let alone a dark one.

The Zeltron leapt towards him, twirling her lightwhip above her head. She landed in front of the Jedi and began her attack. Deoni's energy whip was as crimson as her complexion and had a considerably longer reach than Spiaré's lightsaber. He wasn't sure how to defeat an opponent so armed, so he focused on evasive tactics while he assessed her patterns.

Deoni maneuvered the whip with impressive skill. In rapid succession, she lashed out towards the Jedi, and then brought the whip back to circle around her defensively. With the speed of the whip, Spiaré couldn't see any openings he could exploit to get inside its reach to strike her with his blade.

Deoni's laugh echoed through the dining hall. "This is so much fun! How do you like it, Jedi?"

"Very well, thank you," he answered between heavy breaths. "I've been meaning to get more exercise as I've grown older!"

"I'll give you _exercise_!" Deoni sneered.

Her attacks became more intense and they were connecting closer to him. Spiaré parried the whip a couple of times. But he also realized that she could use it to pull the saber right out of his hand if he let it wrap around the blade. Spiaré leapt high in the air and landed on top of the large dining table. Deoni followed after him with a series of flashy spins that made the lightwhip gracefully dance around her.

"Don't be such a showoff, Deoni! Carelessness will be your downfall!"

She twirled around to lash at the Jedi's shins. "Don't talk to me like you're my master!"

Spiaré jumped straight up and easily avoided the strike. "Suit yourself!"

* * *

Kurloh and Ja'Ina helped Tira sit in the chair behind Mehar's desk. It was big and comfortable as it was designed to support the Kusolan's weight and girth. The pirates removed the slaver's body to another room. Ja'Ina bound Tira's wound the best she could.

Tira clutched her abdomen in pain. "Get going. I'll be alright. Go help your friends."

Kurloh knelt in front of the young woman. "We will, as long as you promise to stay put."

"I'm not going anywhere," Tira answered with a pained smile.

Ja'Ina and Kurloh ran out of the office and down towards the fighting. They both activated their vibro-axes in anticipation of combat.

They made it down to the second level and came across three Stormtroopers. Ja'Ina flew into a graceful, dance-like spin and swung the axe right into the trooper's side. The blade cut cleanly through his armor and into his body, killing him.

Kurloh swung her axe downward to try to catch the second trooper's helmeted head. He bobbed to the side so that her strike slashed through empty air. He then tackled her, causing her weapon to fly from her hands. They tumbled to the floor in a tangled heap and wrestled for a short time before she managed to grab his blaster rifle. She kicked the trooper off of her and rolled away from him. As he started to get up, she blasted him.

The third Stormtrooper fired at Ja'Ina and she dodged the blasts with her Force-enhanced reflexes. She thrust the head of the axe into his gut which knocked him on his back to the floor with the wind knocked out of him. Before the Stormtrooper could get up again, Ja'Ina brought the axe blade down through his armor and into his chest.

The two former slaves continued onward toward the fighting to help their friends, hoping it wasn't too late.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

* * *

Soraa managed to blast another Stormtrooper as she crossed the corridor. She went first in order to provide cover fire as Berini and Taam came across.

At this point, Soraa had a blaster in each hand and was using them to the fullest. It reminded her of Goan's practice range back home; only with the intensity ramped up exponentially. She was grateful for the countless hours of training Goan had given her, as it had saved her life more than a couple of times. Soraa caught another trooper in the chest as Taam scrambled across, leaving the Captain on the opposite side.

A couple of corridors over, Juun, Marka and Teedai were backed into a dead end. They were able to keep the Imperials at bay as they still had some cover. But the pirates' time was quickly running out.

Juun called over the comlink. "Berini! Come in! We need help!"

Berini's intense voice came through the noise of combat. "We're a little busy right now!"

"Damn," Juun muttered. She turned to her comrades. "Well girls, I guess we're on our own for now!"

Just then, the Stormtroopers' attacks seemed to turn away from the three pirates. Marka carefully peered out around the corner.

The Theelin ducked back to her companions. "Someone else's got their attention!"

"Is it Berini?" asked Teedai.

"I dunno. I didn't see who the Imps were firing on."

Juun stepped towards the corner. "Whoever it is, let's take advantage of the moment!"

Carefully, the three women stepped out into the corridor. They saw the troopers from behind. They were firing at some unknown opponent on the opposite side. Standing tall side-by-side in the middle of the corridor, Juun, Teedai and Marka raised their blasters and opened fire on the Stormtroopers.

The troopers were caught completely by surprise with this new attack from behind them. The three pirates were able to take down several of them before they could even turn around to fire back. As the Stormtroopers began to return fire, Juun and Teedai darted up against one corridor wall, with Teedai kneeling in front of Juun while Marka ran over against the opposite wall. They fired back at the troopers, the deafening blasts streaked back and forth through the corridor.

Juun noticed that the Stormtroopers' number was dwindling down and saw something strange on the far side of them. She noticed what appeared to be streaks of silver flashing back and forth. She couldn't tell if it was some strange blaster energy, or maybe some kind of polished battle droid. She intensified her fire and downed the last of the troopers facing them.

Juun and the others rushed up to the fighting, but only watched. They saw two fast-moving figures combating the remaining four Stormtroopers. One was armed with a blaster and the other with a vibro-axe. They were dressed in some kind of strange, silvery outfits.

Marka recognized them and pointed. "Look! It's Ja'Ina and Kurloh!"

Startled, the Stormtroopers spun around and opened fire at Marka before she could react, striking her several times. With perfect synergy, Teedai, Juun, Kurloh and Ja'Ina killed the four troopers with either blaster bolt or axe strike. Kurloh and Ja'Ina rushed to Marka. Juun and Teedai were already by her side as she clung to life. Juun held the Theelin, who had a very difficult time breathing due to her grievous wounds.

Kurloh knelt down in front of her and grabbed her hand. "Marka! Hang on!" She wasn't sure what to say.

Marka looked at her with eyes barely open. "W-what happened with your c-clothes?" She gave a labored smile as she looked at the Togruta's slave costume. It was clear that Marka was fatally wounded.

Kurloh fought to answer through her trembling lips. "Don't worry about it."

The Theelin closed her eyes and slowly nodded. "Okay…" Her head fell back and she breathed no more.

Everyone leaned in around Marka and placed their hands on her in a moment of silence as Juun gently laid her down. The sounds of combat elsewhere in the building snapped the pirates back to the present situation and they all scrambled back to their feet.

Juun looked at Ja'Ina and Kurloh. "It's good to see you again! We need to find Berini, Taam and Soraa and get the hell outta here."

Kurloh stepped forward. "We can't just yet! They want Spiaré!"

"We know that. He knows that."

Ja'Ina added. "Yeah, but what you don't know is that Deoni is an Imperial agent! And she's a Force user as well!"

Astonished by the revelation, Juun and Teedai stared at the young woman, both of them speechless.

"…So we have to go help Spiaré after we link up with the others."

Juun opened the comlink channel. "Captain, come in! We've neutralized the troopers and have Kurloh and Ja'Ina with us. We're on our way!"

"That's wonderful to hear, my dear," Berini responded over the com. "We could use some more friendly faces over here!"

* * *

Spiaré and Deoni continued their duel, amber lightsaber versus red lightwhip. The Imperial agent was slowly gaining the upper hand against the Jedi. It had been a long time since he had gone up against anyone with such skill, and never against another Force user outside of practice sparring in the Jedi Temple so long ago.

Spiaré figured the Zeltron was not really a Sith, but under the current circumstances it made little difference. She possessed amazing prowess coupled with the dark side of the Force, and that made her a very dangerous opponent. What was worse, the Jedi struggled to match up against her lightwhip and was starting to tire.

"What's wrong, Jedi?" Deoni mockingly asked. "Am I too much for you?" She smiled evilly.

"No, not at all, my dear. I'm just getting warmed up!" He smiled back through his growing fatigue.

"Well then, try this one!"

Deoni launched into a series of flips and spins circling around Spiaré. Her lightwhip streaked wildly around her and he held his lightsaber out in defense. The Zeltron struck but he was able to deflect the tip of the whip with his blade. The impact brightly flashed with a loud sizzle. This repeated a couple of times. Spiaré struggled to not connect with the whip too far in to keep it from wrapping around his lightsaber and yanking it from his hands.

Then Deoni launched into a quick succession of lashes that the Jedi couldn't parry. He tried to dodge them, but wasn't quite able to step back fast enough. The very tip of the weapon just caught him in the face, cutting a line that ran along one cheek. He jumped back and yelled with pain.

Spiaré held his face and kept his lightsaber raised in defense. "Very good, Deoni! I'm impressed! But your silly string will have to do more than that!" He worked hard to hide his fear from his adversary.

Deoni laughed. "Impudent fool! By the time I'm finished with you, you'll bear a thousand slashes and beg for death!"

Spiaré fought to contain his frustration. "We'll see about that!" He instantly launched into a Force run with his saber up in the hopes to break through her defense.

* * *

"Is it just me, or are there more Stormtroopers joining our party?" Taam yelled.

"It looks that way," Soraa called back.

The firefight intensified and the Imperial troops began closing in on the pirates. Their sheer numbers meant the troopers would certainly overrun the women very soon. Some troopers fell to the pirates' blasts, but it seemed like two new troopers replaced each dead one.

Berini kept firing frantically. "Soraa! Taam! We need to double back and find another way! On my mark, make a break back to the other side!"

Taam and Soraa looked at each other, confused.

"But Captain-" Taam blurted.

"Now!"

Berini darted out into the corridor with a blaster in each hand, firing wildly at the troopers, yelling the whole time. Taam and Soraa followed her orders and darted back across behind her. Once they reached the other side, they peered around the corner and continued firing. They watched helplessly as Berini was hit by multiple bolts.

Soraa cried out. "No!"

Berini fell to one knee. "Go! That's an order!" She loudly grunted through gritted teeth.

Suddenly, the Stormtroopers fell into disarray. They turned away to face a new adversary behind them. It was Juun, Teedai, Ja'Ina and Kurloh. Soraa and Taam took the opportunity to rush out and drag Berini to safety.

They sat Berini up against the wall. Taam tried to check the Captain's wounds.

"Don't worry about me," Berini growled, pushing the Twi'lek's hands away. "They're just superficial. Now go join your sisters and take down those karking Imp drones!"

Taam and Soraa nodded and ran back out into the corridor. Surrounded by the pirates, the Stormtroopers fell one by one.

When all was clear, Taam called out to the others. "Get over here! The Captain's been hit!"

They all crowded around Berini. She looked up at her crew, trying to hide the pain of her wounds. "What's wrong with you all? Haven't you seen someone shot by a blaster before? I'm fine!" The Captain coughed a couple of times, clearly in pain.

Juun knelt down to her Captain. "But-"

"But nothing! I'm not dying! This is what you can expect from graduates of the 'Imperial Marksmanship Academy'." She gestured to her wounds with a haughty but weak smile.

Juun hung her head. "Captain, Marka's dead."

Berini closed her eyes with a mixture of physical and mental pain then regained her composure after a brief moment. "Okay, we'll worry about her later. Right now, we need to get back to the ship before-"

"Berini, the ship has been taken by the Empire," Ja'Ina interrupted.

"I knew it!" Berini barked, angry and frustrated. She accentuated her ire by pounding her fist on the floor.

"…And Deoni's an Imperial agent! She led the troopers there and now she's after Spiaré!"

The Captain shook her head. "So that's the trap they had planned for him."

Ja'Ina turned grim. "It gets worse… She's a dark side Force user."

Berini was stunned. "What?! How do you know-" Berini tried to push herself upright, but the pain was too great and she slumped back down with a loud groan.

Kurloh interjected. "That doesn't matter now! Spiaré's in danger!"

The Captain shook her head. "He'll have to take care of himself! We've got to take back the _Valkyrie_!"

Ja'Ina looked at Kurloh and then Berini. "With all due respect, Ku and I are going after him."

"Stang, I knew you'd say that," Berini sighed. "Very well, you two go on. But you're on your own!"

Ja'Ina nodded. "Thank you."

Soraa joined her best friend. "I'm going too!"

"Huh?" Ja'Ina did not expect her to volunteer.

"Ina, you need an expert markswoman!"

Taam and Juun helped Berini up. The Captain shook her head again. "Fine, whatever. The rest of us will head back. Just don't keep us waiting too long! Good luck."

Taam, Juun and Teedai helped Berini walk out of the building.

Soraa unslung the sword baldric from her shoulder and handed it back to Ja'Ina. "I thought you'd like to have this."

Ja'Ina smiled and threw the vibro-axe onto the floor. "Thanks!" She gave Soraa a big hug. "I'm glad you're okay!"

"You too!"

Kurloh broke them up. "I hate to interrupt, but we need to get moving!"

* * *

Rann managed to limp back to the landspeeders just as a call came in on her comlink headset.

"Rann, Berini here. Report!"

"Captain, I took care of the Imps here but my mech-leg's pretty messed up. I'm at the speeders now."

"Okay, we'll meet up with you soon. We need to get back to the ship and cleanse it of the Imperial infestation."

"Sithspit!" Rann blurted out. "Did you find Ku and Ina?"

"Yes, but they're not coming with us. We'll fill you in when we arrive!"

"Roger. I'll be waiting."

Rann deactivated the comlink and hobbled into one of the landspeeders. She fell back into the seat with exhaustion and pain.


	17. Chapter 17

_Author's note: I apologize again for the delays. Sometimes things get in the way... Well, the posts may get a little bit less frequent for the rest of the story. I apologize for that too. Thanks for being patient with me!_

_Meanwhile...  
_

* * *

**Chapter Seventeen**

Using the Force, Deoni flung a chair at Spiaré while swinging her lightwhip at him. He slashed the chair with his lightsaber and barely dodged the whip strike. The Jedi had sustained more wounds at the hands of the Imperial agent. There were several tears in his clothing which revealed painful gashes underneath. His resolve was beginning to falter and Deoni could sense it.

"You really should call it quits, Jedi!" Deoni shouted. "It's useless to go on like this!"

Spiaré flipped back away from his opponent. "Fighting against a practitioner of the dark side is anything but useless!"

The painful memories of the fall of Spiaré's master to the betrayal of their clone troopers replayed in his mind. No matter how things developed with today's duel, he would stand up in the face of death just as she did so long ago. For so many years following The Purge, Spiaré had run away from his obligation to the Republic he had once served. For too long he suppressed the sense of duty his master had instilled with her sacrifice, a sense of duty he should have upheld in her honor, but didn't.

When Spiaré finally chose to embrace his responsibilities and aid the growing Rebel Alliance, he knew that the Empire would someday find him. Now that was the reality of the situation and he was not going to back down, no matter what. The Jedi didn't want to die, but if it was the will of the Force, he was ready to accept the fate he was given with the belief that something good would ultimately come from his death.

Meeting Ja'Ina and Kurloh was perhaps the best thing to happen to Spiaré in a long time. They were the first Force-sensitives he had met since the Clone Wars. It gave him hope that perhaps the ways of the Jedi would still somehow continue in the galaxy. He regretted not teaching them more about how to use the Force.

In spite of being in the middle of combat, Spiaré reached out to sense Ja'Ina and Kurloh's presences. He felt that they were still nearby, but now free. He knew they were coming for him, which was the last thing he wanted them to do. Deoni was more than capable of killing them, or even worse.

_Stay away! Don't come up here!_

* * *

Running through the corridors, Kurloh and Ja'Ina led the way, following Spiaré's presence through the Force. Soraa followed right behind brandishing a blaster in each hand. Ja'Ina also had her scimitar out, ready for combat. The Jedi was still alive, and the women hoped they would be able to reach him before that changed.

The three pirates made their way to the next level. As they got closer, Kurloh and Ja'Ina recognized that Spiaré's presence was located in the dining hall. They also received his warning through the Force, but ignored it. They were determined to help him in any way they could.

In the distance, the pirates saw three more Gamorreans in the corridor in front of them. With no hesitation, Kurloh and Soraa cut the guards down with their blasters. They wanted no interference once they got to the dining hall.

* * *

In his desperation, Spiaré made a terrible mistake. He tried to throw his lightsaber at Deoni and guide it through the Force in the hopes he could get it through her defenses. Unfortunately, she easily zeroed in on the flying blade and wrapped her lightwhip around it. She flung the saber away and it automatically deactivated as it hit the floor. The Jedi was now unarmed. Deoni intensified her attacks in a manner that prevented Spiaré from retrieving his weapon. He frantically jumped and juked in order to avoid the lightwhip, but the lashes struck closer each time, pushing him farther away from his lightsaber.

"This is it, Jedi! You are finished! I look forward to personally delivering your body to the Emperor!"

"Don't count your dewbacks before they're hatched," Spiaré sputtered breathlessly. He knew the others were about to join them. Hopefully, that would make a difference.

Ja'Ina, Soraa and Kurloh just then ran into the large hall. In haste, Soraa fired both of her blasters at Deoni. Without taking her eyes off of Spiaré, the Zeltron spun her lightwhip around and deftly deflected the blasts. She then gave the young woman a violent Force-push, causing her to fly painfully into the wall and drop to the floor.

Deoni quickly glanced at the newcomers. "Hello girls! So nice of you to join us! You're about to witness the death of the last Jedi in the galaxy!"

The Zeltron punctuated her statement with another snap of her lightwhip at Spiaré. He was able to dodge it, but a second lash instantly followed and struck his leg. The whip burned through his trousers and cut into his flesh. He fell to the floor hollering in pain.

"Spiaré! No!" Ja'Ina screamed. She drew her scimitar and launched into a Force-augmented run straight for Deoni.

The Jedi hunter turned to deal with the brash young woman racing toward her. "Are you serious? The Force may be with you, but your puny sword is useless!" She laughed as she brought her whip back to strike Ja'Ina down.

Ja'Ina raised her scimitar as she ran toward Deoni. "You'll find I'm full of surprises!"

Deoni swung her weapon right at Ja'Ina, who brought her cortosis sword forward to parry the attack. As the lightwhip wrapped around the scimitar's blade, the crimson energy of the whip wavered and destabilized. Deoni stood aghast as the whip spontaneously extinguished.

"What the hell!" Deoni yelled as she desperately pounded the hilt's control, trying to reactivate her weapon.

"Spiaré, now!" Ja'Ina cried out.

Ja'Ina had bought Spiaré the few seconds he needed to Force-pull his lightsaber back into his hand. He ignited its amber blade and ran Force-speed at Deoni. She turned to face the Jedi just as he impaled her with his weapon. Her eyes grew wide with pain and shock and she dropped the hilt of her lightwhip. Spiaré withdrew the saber blade from Deoni's body and she collapsed to the floor.

Almost inaudibly, Deoni muttered her last words. "D-damn… you…"

* * *

In the fading daylight, Berini and the others made it back to the capital city without harassment from the Empire. But once there, they found the _Queen Valkyrie_ surrounded by troopers. The pirate captain felt sick to her stomach at the sight of her ship taken by the Imperial forces. Coupled with her wounds, it was almost too much for the normally-tough captain to handle.

Rann put her hand on Berini's shoulder. "Hey, at least she's still in one piece."

"What about our sisters on board?" Teedai fearfully asked.

Berini remained resolute. "I'm sure they're okay. If anyone has been so much as scratched, those fierfekking Imps are going to regret they'd ever been born!" She gritted her teeth with anxious concern for Aurelia.

"Damn right!" Rann answered.

From their hiding place, Juun looked at the landing pad through macrobinoculars. "I count about twenty troopers around the ship. But who knows how many are on board."

Rann activated her comlink headset. "Soraa, come in. You there?"

A few moments passed before Soraa's voice came through everyone's headsets. "Yeah, we're here. And we've got a certain Jedi with us!"

"What about that traitorous Zeltron?" Berini interjected.

"Deoni's not going to trouble anyone anymore."

Berini was pleased with the news. "Good. Now get back here, we still need to take back our ship!"

"Will do. We have just one more friend to pick up on our way out."

"Make it fast!"

"Yes, Captain."

* * *

Sitting on the floor in the dining hall, Soraa deactivated her comlink. "Ku! Berini and the others are back at the _Valkyrie_ waiting for us. We've got unwanted guests we need to get rid of."

Kurloh helped Soraa stand up. "Well, what're we waiting for?"

They walked over to Ja'Ina and Spiaré, who had just laid Deoni's body upon the large dining table.

The Jedi faced Ja'Ina and took her by the shoulders. "Good job. You are worthy of the title 'Jedi' in my eyes." He gave the young woman a warm, fatherly smile.

Ja'Ina almost started to cry. "Thank you, Spiaré." She hugged the Jedi.

Soraa interrupted the tender moment. "We're not outta this yet. We gotta get back to the ship."

"Don't forget about Tira, or… Marka." Ja'Ina didn't know how to put it.

Spiaré nodded, sensing the pain of Marka's death. "Of course not. Let's go."

The quartet left the dining hall and arrived at Mehar's office shortly after. They found the door open and the room unoccupied.

Kurloh looked around. "Where's Tira?"

Spiaré reached out through the Force. "There's an Imperial shuttle parked outside. She's likely been taken there."

"Well, let's hurry before they take off!"

Soraa looked at Mehar's desk and spied a familiar item. It was her copy of the Sea of Lights' music recording. She darted inside, snatched it from the desk and stuffed it in the pocket of her armorweave jacket. The young woman was so happy to have it back that she almost cried. She didn't care so much about the physical recording, but rather the music encoded in it. She raced back out to join the others.

Soraa, Ja'Ina, Kurloh and Spiaré made it back down to the ground level to where Marka lay. Spiaré gently picked her up and carried her out with him. When they emerged from the building, they saw a Theta-class shuttle parked in the front courtyard. Several Stormtroopers were there waiting for them. The troopers opened fire on the pirates and Jedi, all of whom ducked back inside the door. Spiaré set Marka's body down inside to keep safe.

Soraa and Kurloh drew their blasters and laid down cover fire for Spiaré and Ja'Ina, who ran out to engage the troopers outside. The Jedi took down two troopers by deflecting their blasts back at them.

Ja'Ina ran full-bore at another trooper and deftly blocked his blasts with her scimitar. She launched into a spinning attack on the astounded Stormtrooper. The trailing silver fabric of her slave costume whirled gracefully around her as she twirled in midair. She slashed at the miniscule exposed area at the side of his neck between his helmet and shoulder. He went down clutching his profusely-bleeding jugular wound.

Spiaré cut down two more troopers; their plastoid armor offered little protection from his lightsaber's blade. The remaining Stormtroopers were picked off by Soraa's and Kurloh's blaster shots.

The shuttle's engines roared to life as it prepared to lift off into the twilight sky. Kurloh and Soraa darted out of the building as Spiaré and Ja'Ina ran up the shuttle's ramp. Kurloh carried Marka's body in her arms.

Inside the shuttle, Spiaré and Ja'Ina were met by Commander Pavan, who was holding Tira in front of him with a blaster to her head. Lieutenant Durrn was in the cockpit at the shuttle's controls.

Spiaré extinguished his lightsaber. "It's no use, let the young lady go."

Pavan tightened his hold on Tira. "If you don't want this slave girl's blood on your hands, I suggest you both drop your weapons."

Ja'Ina defiantly held firm with her sword ready. "You don't know who you're dealing with, Commander! I suggest you let her go."

The Imperial officer laughed. "I know _exactly_ who I'm dealing with – a fugitive has-been Jedi and another slave girl!"

Soraa and Kurloh then joined Ja'Ina and Spiaré. Kurloh placed Marka on the seats in the back of the passenger hold.

Soraa aimed her blaster toward Pavan's head. "You better let Tira go, now. Believe me; I can hit you from here with ease." She held her pistol out and gripped it with both hands.

The shuttle began to take off, but Pavan blocked the way to the cockpit. The standoff lasted for a few moments.

Pavan painfully pushed the tip of his blaster into Tira's temple, making her whimper. "So, this is your choice, eh? Very well, you can watch her die."

Soraa's temper flared. "If she dies, you die, Imperial scum!"

Everything happened in an instant. Pavan instead swung his blaster out away from Tira and fired. Soraa simultaneously fired back, hitting Pavan in the shoulder. Spiaré Force-pulled the blaster from the officer's hand, but was an instant too late. Pavan's blast tore into Soraa's chest. Tira bolted from Pavan as he grabbed his shoulder in pain. Soraa fell to the deck.

Ja'Ina screamed, "NOOO!"

The young woman instantaneously charged at Pavan and brought her scimitar up. In the worst rage she ever felt, the dark side of the Force swelled throughout her being.

Spiaré felt the strong, dark pulse in the Force from the young woman. "Ina! Stop!"

Driven by that profound darkness, Ja'Ina landed a roundhouse kick to the Imperial officer's head with Force-enhanced speed and strength. He hit the deck hard and she landed on her feet straddling him. Pavan was knocked unconscious by the brutal impacts of the kick and fall.

Punctuated by an intense scream, Ja'Ina swept her scimitar downward onto the defenseless officer, killing him with a deep slash through his abdomen. Ja'Ina stood panting over Pavan's body. Her sword dripped with the man's blood. Her facial expression was like that of a dangerous wild animal. The dark power that surged through her was indescribable. This time, she felt a hunger for that power and began to lose herself in it.

_Ja'Ina, Ja'Ina! Don't give in to it! You must fight it!_

The power made her feel invincible, omnipotent. The effects were profoundly intoxicating. She was ready to submit herself to the rage completely. Spiaré felt Ja'Ina slipping into the darkness and reached out to her through the Force. He put everything he had into keeping contact with her, to help guide her back before she fell to the dark side.

Ja'Ina felt her dark passions burn through her soul; she felt she could do anything if she just gave into them. _I can save Soraa! It's the only way to save Soraa! I need to save Soraa! Save Soraa…Soraa… _Then, the young woman snapped out of her rage with a loud gasp and dropped her scimitar.

With the surge of the dark side within Ja'Ina abated, Spiaré darted past her into the cockpit to deal with Lieutenant Durrn. Ja'Ina turned and ran over to Soraa. Kurloh and Tira were already crouched beside her.

Ja'Ina's honey-brown face filled with tears which fell like rain. She dropped to her knees next to her dear friend. "Soraa! Soraa! Soraa!"

Soraa was barely breathing and her eyes were closed. Ja'Ina took her hand, which already felt icy cold.

"Soraa, don't leave me! P-please! You gotta make it!" Ja'Ina trembled uncontrollably.

Soraa slowly opened her eyes. It was apparent that she could not focus them. "Ina… I'm glad… you're here…"

"Yes, I'm right here! I'm with you!"

"You… alright?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine!" Ja'Ina could hardly see through her tears. Her face was soaked.

"G-good… I f-feel… at ease…"

Ja'Ina smiled with trembling lips and squeezed Soraa's hand. "We'll get you fixed up, right Spiaré?"

Ja'Ina turned and looked up at the Jedi as he approached from the cockpit. He silently shook his head. Soraa's wound was beyond even the best Jedi healer's skills. Ja'Ina turned back and threw herself on Soraa and held her tightly. She cried even louder. Tira and Kurloh laid their hands on Ja'Ina's back to console her.

With Ja'Ina's head right next to hers, Soraa turned and whispered into her ear. "Just like the… Force will… always be… with you… so… will… I…"

Soraa's chest trembled with one final breath and she was gone. Ja'Ina wept bitterly as she continued to embrace her.

Spiaré silently bade Kurloh and Tira to join him in the cockpit, allowing Ja'Ina some time alone in her time of profound loss.


	18. Chapter 18

_Author's Note: I'm sorry things have been delayed, I hope I haven't lost anyone. I appreciate each and every person who reads my story! And as always, I welcome any correspondence. And now, back to our story..._

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen**

Berini, Rann, Juun, Taam and Teedai waited in their landspeeders on the far side of a barren field, a fair distance away from the _Queen Valkyrie_. Spiaré and the others would soon be joining them to help take back the ship from the Imperial forces. The Captain was trying to formulate a plan, but the uncertainty of the situation and the pain of her wounds made it difficult to think.

It was nearly dark out now, but the pirates could clearly see the Stormtroopers still surrounding the ship. The ramp was open and the ventral flood lights illuminated the pad. The troopers had set up a repeating blaster cannon on a tripod on next to the ramp.

Berini was thoroughly exhausted and put her face in her hand. She hoped that the Jedi would have a plan when the others arrived. As annoying as he could sometimes be, Spiaré was surprisingly valuable to her crew. The crazy thought of actually asking a male, a Jedi no less, to join her crew flashed in Berini's mind. She smiled to herself and shook her head. The idea was preposterous.

A hail came over the pirates' comlinks.

"Berini here."

Spiaré's voice came through the com. "We're on our way now; should be about ten minutes."

"That fast? Good! What's your plan?" She assumed the Jedi had one.

"We've appropriated an Imperial shuttle. What I want you to do is draw as many of the troops away from the ship. We'll come in and strafe them to clear a path to the ship."

Rann was excited by the plan. "Yeah! Now we're talking!"

"Very well," answered Berini. "We'll get their attention and hopefully take out a few in the process."

"Understood," Spiaré replied. "Good luck."

Berini swore she heard a sense of genuine personal concern for her well-being in his voice. She replied with a smile, "Thanks."

Berini deactivated the comlink. "Alright ladies, you heard the Jedi! Let's get out there and trap some Stormtroopers!"

The pirates fired up their landspeeders' engines and pulled out into the open field near the landing platform. Teedai, Taam and Berini were in one speeder, while Rann and Juun were in the second. Berini, Taam and Rann brought their blasters up and fired at the Stormtroopers, each hitting one.

Startled, the other troopers returned fire at the approaching speeders. Teedai pulled hard on the controls and spun their speeder around. Berini and Taam continued firing towards the troopers, now behind them.

Rann called out to Juun. "Bring us in closer! I wanna take out that repeating blaster before they can charge it up!"

Juun nodded and accelerated the speeder. Rann brought up her blaster pistol and steadied it with both hands, her arms extended out. She looked through the sight and zeroed-in on the repeating blaster. The Stormtroopers continued their attack as the pirates quickly approached the ship. The speeder took a couple of glancing hits. Juun had to rock the speeder side to side to avoid serious damage.

"Hold her steady!" Rann yelled.

Juun shot back, "Would you rather we get cooked?"

The pirates turned alongside the ship and maintained their speed. Rann locked on the repeating blaster and fired. The weapon exploded and the force of the blast threw a couple of the Stormtroopers back from it.

Rann pumped her fist. "Yeaah-hoo! Take that you filthy mynocks!"

Juun pulled the speeder away and headed back to regroup with the others. The remaining troopers took the bait and bolted out from under the _Valkyrie_ in pursuit. More troops emerged from the ramp to investigate the disturbance.

The Stormtroopers took aim on Juun and Rann's speeder. They fired and hit one of the engines. It exploded and Juun lost control of the speeder, which spun around and nosed into the ground. As the speeder tumbled, the women were thrown from their seats into the dirt. The landspeeder rested on its side between the pirates and the Stormtroopers, offering some protection from the blast. Juun pulled Rann back against the wrecked landspeeder to temporary safety.

Teedai stood up from her seat in the speeder. "We gotta go help them!"

Berini pulled the distressed Mirialan back down. "Negative! They'll have to hold out until the others arrive. We need to stay back and give them some cover fire from here."

Berini, Taam and Teedai watched as more Imperial troops headed out into the field. The troopers concentrated their fire on the downed landspeeder behind which Rann and Juun took refuge.

Juun ducked low, unable to return fire on the advancing Stormtroopers. "Blast it! Where are Spiaré and the others?!"

Rann checked the charge on her blaster's power pack. "They'd better make it quick! I'm fighting the urge to go out there and start blasting away at those blood-sucking bantha ticks, shelter or not!"

* * *

Inside the _Queen Valkyrie_, the situation became confused. The remaining seven pirates being held in the hangar bay could hear the unmistakable sounds of combat outside the ship. Most of the Stormtroopers charged down the ramp, leaving three to stand guard over their captives. Yurlya looked at the Twi'lek Yifu, who was sitting nearby, and subtly nodded. The signal was quickly spread to the others.

As soon as the women were alone with their guards, they struck. The Stormtroopers were caught completely off-guard as the pirates rushed them. Yurlya, another Twi'lek named Aaj-ki and a Mirialan named Jiiet grabbed the three troopers' blaster rifles in the scuffle and shot them dead. Yifu ran to the ramp control and closed it. The Zeltron pilot Mylyn and the Theelin communications officer Gartia ran to the cockpit.

* * *

Outside, Berini, Taam and Teedai noticed that the ramp into the ship closed up, which caused more confusion and disarray among the Imperial forces outside.

The Captain hoped that meant the ship had been re-taken by the crew, so she opened the comlink channel. "This is Berini to _Queen Valkyrie_. Come in! We're right outside! Come in, please!" Berini repeated the hail over and over.

Mylyn and Gartia made it to the cockpit and quickly took their stations. When they put on their comlink headsets, they heard Berini's hails.

Gartia responded. "Gartia here, Captain!"

"Thank the Force! What's your status?"

"Could be better, but we have eliminated the last of the Imps on board thanks to your diversion."

"Excellent! Hold tight, we're about to get reinforcements from the air."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"How's the crew?"

"Myself, Mylyn, Fenn, Yurlya, Yifu, Myrrna, Aaj-ki and Jiiet are okay. Aurelia's hiding, probably in the panic room. The rest didn't make it…"

Teedai and Taam both looked at Berini, who closed her eyes with the pain of losing more of her crew. At this point, the Captain could no longer hide it.

Just then, the Theta-class shuttle piloted by Spiaré swooped down and began firing on the hapless Stormtroopers on the ground. Some tried in futility to shoot at the ship while others sought cover under the _Valkyrie_.

Berini waved her extended hand forward. "Alright! Teedai, punch it!"

"Yes, Captain!" The Mirialan hit the speeder's accelerator and they charged toward the _Valkyrie_.

Taam readied her blaster. "It's time to bag some more Imps!"

Juun and Rann saw Berini, Taam and Teedai zip past them in their speeder. Juun peered over the wreckage and watched as the Imperial troops were routed by the airstrike.

Juun ducked back down and put her arm around Rann. "C'mon, let's go!"

"Right on!" Rann replied.

Juun helped Rann to her feet. Her damaged cybernetic leg was near-useless, but she hobbled as quickly as she could with Juun's help. Rann had her blaster out, ready to take down more troopers.

After a brief exchange of fire, the pirates dispatched the remaining Stormtroopers who had retreated beneath the ship. Spiaré landed the shuttle in the field next to the _Queen Valkyrie_. Berini, Taam, Teedai, Juun and Rann approached the craft.

The shuttle's ramp extended to the ground. The _Queen Valkyrie's_ floodlights provided adequate illumination in front of the shuttle. Out first walked Kurloh carrying Marka's body. Next was Tira, who held a crying Ja'Ina around the shoulders. Last was Spiaré, bearing the numerous wounds he sustained from his duel with Deoni and carrying Soraa's body. Everyone from the shuttle wore solemn expressions of pain and despair.

Dismayed, Rann uttered, "Soraa, no…" She nearly choked on her words.

Juun, Taam and Teedai were similarly upset by the loss of more comrades. Berini herself fought hard to hold back her tears, but one managed to escape and streak down her cheek. She had never lost so many of her crew before. She looked Spiaré in squarely in the eye, and the Jedi slightly nodded to her.

Berini activated the comlink and cleared her throat. "Gartia, everything's clear. Open the ramp."

Gartia's voice came over the comlink, "Affirmative."

A moment later, the _Valkyrie_'s ramp opened and Yurlya, Aaj-ki and Jiiet emerged, triumphantly carrying the Stormtroopers' rifles aloft.

* * *

Everyone returned to the ship. Soraa and Marka's bodies were respectfully laid side-by-side on the hangar's deck. The other dead pirates were similarly laid.

Berini called into the comlink. "Mylyn, ready the ship for take-off!" She turned to raise the ramp.

Spiaré stopped her. "I'm not coming with you."

"Why not, Master Jedi?"

He pointed his thumb upward. "The star destroyer that's been chasing us across the galaxy is in orbit up there. The second your ship comes into their sights, your trip will be over."

"So what do you think you can accomplish on your own?"

"I can draw them away from you. I'm the one they want anyway."

Ja'Ina ran up to the Jedi. "But that's suicide!"

Spiaré took both of the young woman's hands. "Trust me, I'll be just fine. I've made it this long after the Purge, I'm not about to stop now." He gave her a warm smile.

"Then take me with you!"

"Oh no, Ja'Ina. You can't do that. Your place is here."

"But I could learn so much from you-"

Spiaré placed his finger on her lips. "That's enough. Remember what I told you?"

More tears streaked down Ja'Ina's face as she quickly nodded.

"Good." The Jedi eyed her knowingly. _Also, remember that revenge only brings more pain and suffering. That is another path to the dark side._

"I understand." Ja'Ina gave the Jedi a long, tight hug. She cried into his shoulder. "I love you, Spiaré!"

"I love you too, Ja'Ina. Take what you have learned and use it wisely."

_Thank you, Spiaré. I will never forget you._

Spiaré released himself from the hug and looked her in the eye. _Remember that the Force will be with you always. And through the Force, you will always have a connection with those whom you love, including Soraa._

Ja'Ina smiled through her tears and stepped away from Spiaré.

Kurloh stepped up to the Jedi. "Thank you for everything." She hugged him.

"You're welcome, Kurloh. Make sure you take good care of your sisters, especially this one." He gestured to Ja'Ina.

The Togruta smiled. "I certainly will."

The Jedi turned to Berini. "Well Captain, it's time for me to go."

"Spiaré, you have definitely changed my opinion about Jedi. You're a good man, I hate to lose you."

Spiaré playfully smiled. "Sorry Berini, I wouldn't make a very good pirate."

"Well, I wouldn't make a good rebel, either." Berini returned his smile. "I hate taking orders."

Without warning, the Jedi pulled the pirate captain to him and gave her a kiss. The others around them gasped. Surprisingly, Berini didn't push him away. Once he was finished, he stepped back from her.

"What was that for?" Berini asked with a shaky voice.

"You pirates depend a lot on luck. I figured that kissing a Jedi would bring you lots of it!" He winked at her.

"Jedi don't believe in luck," Berini replied with a laugh.

Spiaré shrugged and smiled. "If I'm ever in the Corporate Sector, I'll make sure to look you up."

Berini nodded. "Yeah, you do that, Spiaré. _Mahn uhl Fharth bey ihn valle._"

"You speak Old Corellian," Spiaré said, his head cocked with pleasant surprise. "I haven't heard that in a long time. Thank you for the well wish." He smiled one more time and flicked a small salute to the pirate captain.

The Jedi turned and walked down the ramp. When he got to the bottom he turned around and looked back up into the ship. As the ramp rose, he raised a hand to bid the women goodbye. Ja'Ina stood at the top of the ramp and looked at Spiaré as it rose. Kurloh joined her and the two waved back at the Jedi, knowing they would probably never see him again.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen**

* * *

"What's our status?" Berini called out as she arrived on the bridge of the _Queen Valkyrie_.

Mylyn, the Zeltron pilot, replied, "The hyperdrive has been fully restored, but the sublight engines are at seventy-eight percent."

"Still enough to achieve escape velocity?"

"Barely. It'll be a rough flight until we're out of the atmosphere."

"Very well. As long as we can make the jump into hyperspace once we're clear…" Berini turned to the Twi'lek Aaj-ki, who was manning the nav station. "Is the star destroyer still out there?"

"Yes, Captain. It's holding at an altitude of about eight-hundred, fifty kilometers."

"Very well, prepare for lift-off."

The entire bridge crew replied, "Yes, Captain!"

Gartia activated the intercom. "Everyone secure your stations. We will lift off in t-minus two minutes."

Mylyn initiated the launch sequence with a series of button presses and switch throws on her console. Berini sat back in her chair, fighting the pain of her wounds. Adrenaline coursed through her veins as the ship came to life once more after being stranded the last several days. The quicker they could get to the Corporate Sector, the better.

The dual turbolaser cannons were charged and ready for combat. Rann and Kurloh manned the dorsal turret, while Taam and Juun manned the ventral. The pirates weren't sure how long it would take Spiaré to divert the Imperials' attention from them, so they needed to be able hold out as long as possible.

Myrrna was freed from her carbonite imprisonment and taken to the infirmary, despite her protests. She was physically strong and spent only a few hours in carbon freeze, so the aftereffects were minimal. Still, Berini wanted her to stay there for her badly-wounded leg. Ja'Ina and Tira sat with the Twi'lek First Officer.

Earlier, after a brief, touching reunion, Berini had Aurelia stay in her safe room until they safely made it into hyperspace.

The fallen pirates were all lined up respectfully in the hangar bay with sheets over their bodies. Their funeral would be held once they made it to the Corporate Sector.

* * *

The _Queen Valkyrie_ slowly lifted off the landing pad, and the stolen Imperial shuttle alongside it. The shuttle's wings unfolded once it was clear of the ground.

Spiaré came over the comlink. "Berini. I'll escort you out of the atmosphere. We'll split up from there. Just make sure you get away from that star destroyer."

"We'll do our best. Unfortunately, our sublight drives are not operating at full capacity."

"That's all we can ask. Spiaré out."

The two vessels climbed into the night sky with only their anti-collision strobes and thruster exhausts visible in the dark. The _Queen Valkyrie_ rose slowly with her operational drives at maximum. Spiaré made sure to stay close by in case any unfriendly fighters approached. While the Theta-class shuttle was not really a starfighter, it was still fairly well-armed and maneuverable.

After several tense minutes of bumpy ascension, the pirate C-90 Corvette broke out of the atmosphere. Sure enough, the same Gladiator-class Star Destroyer they engaged in the Olu-Dra system was waiting for them in orbit.

The star destroyer opened fire on the shuttle and pirate ship. The _Valkyrie_ banked away from the star destroyer and returned fire from the twin turbolasers. The Corvette rocked from the destroyer's blasts. With the help of the astromech droid Fitty, the engineering crew fought to keep the strained engines online.

Spiaré turned towards the Imperial ship. He opened up an Imperial com frequency, which the _Queen Valkyrie_'s communications system was also tuned to. "Spiaré to _Queen Valkyrie_, come in."

"Berini here. Go ahead."

"Here's where we part ways, Captain. You ladies take care of yourselves, okay?"

"We will. You too, and thanks for everything, Spiaré. Berini out." She smiled as she closed the channel. "Let's hope they were listening and take the bait."

Spiaré accelerated to top speed as he set the calculations for the jump into hyperspace. He angled his front deflector screens and began firing the shuttle's cannons at the star destroyer's hull as he skimmed its surface towards the command tower.

While the Jedi was safe from the star destroyer's larger guns, it was bristled with numerous smaller ones which opened fire on his ship. The blasts criss-crossed all around him and he carefully dodged them with his Force-augmented piloting skills. He hadn't seen this much action since the Clone Wars, but it all came back to him in that moment.

The shuttle's nav-computer completed the calculations as Spiaré closed in on the command tower. He ceased fire as he prepared to initiate the jump. The Jedi smiled as he sensed the fear emanating from the star destroyer's bridge crew. He aimed his ship straight for the tower and maintained his velocity.

* * *

The _Queen Valkyrie_'s bridge crew monitored Spiaré's progress as they prepared for their jump to the Corporate Sector. Aaj-ki reported his status.

Berini anxiously leaned forward in her chair and braced herself with her hands on the arm rests. "What the hell is that mynock brain doing?!" Even though she didn't outwardly show it, the Captain cared very much for the Jedi. Her admiration and affection for Spiaré slowly grew over the time he was aboard her ship.

The _Valkyrie_ rocked from another blast. "Maximum shields around the sublight drives!" Berini yelled. "We don't want to lose any more of them! We must get out of here before they launch fighters!"

As the pirate ship angled the dorsal side toward the star destroyer, Rann and Kurloh targeted one of the larger cannons that were relentlessly pounding them. Rann mashed the triggers and the turbolaser's barrels recoiled with the blast. Despite the increasing distance between the ships, the shot squarely connected with the target, which became a bright plume of orange fire. Rann and Kurloh cheered and high-fived each other.

* * *

Spiaré continued to barrel down on the star destroyer's command tower. The defensive fire intensified as he approached. He tightened his grip on the controls as sweat beaded down his brow. Reaching out with the Force to aid his maneuver, he banked away from the command tower at the last instant with the shuttle's wing missing the tower by mere meters.

Spiaré deliberately delayed his jump for a few moments to ensure the Imperials would be able to track his bearing. He directed his thoughts to the _Queen Valkyrie_ one last time.

_May the Force be with you and guide you to a more peaceful path…_

On board the pirate ship, both Ja'Ina in the infirmary and Kurloh in the turbolaser turret received the Jedi's comforting message. They both smiled and nodded to themselves at that same moment.

Spiaré engaged the shuttle's hyperdrive and it streaked away from the star destroyer, which quickly disengaged the _Queen Valkyrie_ and matched the Jedi's last known heading. After a few moments, the Imperial vessel entered hyperspace and was gone. The _Queen Valkyrie_ was alone and ready to make her own jump.

"All systems are 'Go'," Mylyn called out.

Berini stood up from her chair. "Excellent! Initiate the jump!"

Out the forward viewport, the bridge crew watched as the stars began to streak forward. In an instant, the _Queen Valkyrie_ left the Orvax system.


	20. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

* * *

The _Queen Valkyrie_ safely entered the Corporate Sector and dropped out of hyperspace. Berini had yet to decide where within the CorpSec to travel to, but it didn't matter at the moment. What was important now was that she had brought her crew, her family, to a safe haven away from the Empire.

Their journey was not without cost. Since their first encounter with the Imperial star destroyer in the Olu-Dra system, the _Queen Valkyrie_ lost nearly half her crew. This grieved Berini greatly. She regarded each member of her crew as her own daughter and she had never lost anyone before. And to lose so many at once made it an even harder blow for the pirate captain.

When Berini was a junior officer in the Imperial Navy, she ignored the rumors about the extreme measures the Empire took to maintain control of the galaxy. Once she left, those rumors became reality through the past experiences of some of her crew. Now the truth was all too apparent to the Captain given the recent events. For the first time, Berini truly hated the Empire for what it has done to her personally and saw it as the truly evil organization it was.

Word came through the HoloNet that the Empire was actually behind the destruction of Alderaan. This only confirmed the pirates' strong suspicions when the news of Alderaan first broke. The Empire had developed an unbelievably powerful super-weapon called the Death Star and used it on the peaceful planet. Further word came that the Rebellion against the Empire had managed to destroy the Death Star and many star systems began to rally behind the Rebellion's cause.

Despite the dramatic increase in the Rebellion's strength, Berini still had reservations about joining them. She was not ready to put her ship and crew back into harm's way again. Still, Spiaré had planted a spark in the pirate captain that made her think that maybe someday she'd consider joining the effort to bring the Empire down once and for all.

* * *

The crew set about the solemn task of burying their dead comrades. They all gathered around the airlock and one-by-one set adrift the bodies of their fallen sisters. Each one was wrapped in clean, white linen and gently placed inside the airlock. Before the outer hatch was opened, the air was slowly evacuated to avoid explosive decompression. Fitty stood inside the airlock and carefully nudged the body out of the hatch to peacefully rest in the weightlessness of space.

Everyone gathered around a holomonitor next to the airlock to watch each burial. Some of the women openly wept, some prayed, and some stood silently as each of their honored dead was released from the ship. Her own wounds bandaged, Berini stood austerely behind the rest of the crew as to not reveal her own silent tears. Aurelia held Berini's hand tightly as she too cried, punctuated with loud sniffles. Tira silently stood next to Ja'Ina and Kurloh.

Soraa was the last to be buried. Ja'Ina helped with placing her body inside the airlock. She knelt down and laid her head on Soraa's body, her bitter tears soaked into the linen wrap. Fitty let out a soft, mournful electronic whimper. He had grown very fond of the two young women ever since they flew off in In-Dee Joh's fighter back on Galathu. His programming was sophisticated enough that he would genuinely miss Soraa's presence.

Ja'Ina did not say a word the entire time she rested her head on Soraa's chest. Her loss was too profound for any words. The two young women were closer than friends, closer than sisters. They had finally achieved their shared dream of leaving home for a more exciting life, and were planning on living that life together for a very long time. Even if they found love and men to marry, they still would have stuck together.

Ja'Ina wished that she could somehow let Goan and Raelin know about Soraa's passing, but knew that was impossible right now. She hoped that maybe someday she'd be able to return to Galathu for that reason.

The time came for Ja'Ina to let Soraa go to her final resting place in the gentle cradle of interstellar space. The young woman kissed her beloved friend's forehead and slowly stood up. Walking back out of the airlock into the corridor was by far the most difficult thing Ja'Ina ever had to do in her life. Her legs weakened from the psychological impact and Kurloh managed to catch her before she collapsed. Rann helped the Togruta bring Ja'Ina out in spite of her damaged cybernetic leg.

The airlock door swept shut, leaving Fitty with Soraa's body inside. Assisted by Rann and Kurloh, Ja'Ina stood right in front of the holomonitor to watch Soraa's burial.

The loud hiss of the air evacuating the airlock sounded colder than ice. It seemed to last for an agonizing eternity. Once the atmospheric pressure gauge read zero atmospheres, the outer hatch was opened. Ja'Ina watched as Fitty slowly rolled to Soraa's body. The astromech droid extended a small utility appendage and used it to gently push the body towards the hatch. Soraa's linen-wrapped form slowly and smoothly glided out of the airlock.

Ja'Ina fought her tears so she could see Soraa up to the very last moment before the hatch was closed. Ja'Ina broke down and collapsed to the deck as the hatch was sealed and the restoration of the airlock's atmosphere began. Kurloh and Rann knelt down next to her and everyone else gathered around in support.

* * *

Ja'Ina spent the next several hours alone in her quarters. She just didn't feel like doing anything else or being around anyone else. It took a little while for her to realize that the profound darkness had returned. It had started with Soraa's fatal wounding onboard the shuttle, but was out of mind until now. It was all she could focus on.

The young woman realized that she again had touched the dark side of the Force, and it pulled even harder on her being than ever before. She felt all of the out-of-control emotions Spiaré had warned her about – anger, fear and hatred. _These are all paths to the dark side_, he told her. Ja'Ina now understood why the Jedi warned her against revenge just before they parted. Revenge was the strongest sensation she felt – revenge for the death of Soraa; revenge against the Empire.

As Ja'Ina felt these sensations, she wondered what happened to Deoni to make her embrace the dark side. The young woman did see why she couldn't fight it, though. The power Ja'Ina felt when she killed Commander Pavan was like nothing else in the galaxy. The effects were so intoxicating that she nearly got swept away by it. In that brief moment, Ja'Ina did feel like she was omnipotent and invincible. But just before it was too late, she saw the power for the illusion it truly was. That illusion was shattered by the truth and light of her love for Soraa.

Ja'Ina looked up and smiled through her tears. _Thank you for saving me from the darkness, my dear Soraa. I would have been lost without you._ She took a deep breath and felt at peace once more.

Ja'Ina sat down at the small desk, upon which was placed some of Soraa's belongings – the DL-44 blaster Goan had given her, her old leather jacket which still bore the hole in the arm where Dun'ii had shot her, and the Sea of Lights music recording Raelin had given her. Ja'Ina picked up the recording and looked at it.

The cover had pictures of the band – Irsann, the percussionist; Ag'ran, the Bith pianorganist; Doren, the Zabrak bassist; and Raelin, the lead vocalist. Soraa had quite the crush on Raelin. Ja'Ina could see why. The man was handsome and a good singer; two desirable qualities for a young woman to seek. Ja'Ina smiled warmly with the fond memories.

Ja'Ina saw that Raelin had signed the cover right under his picture. She read it.

_To Soraa, my number one fan - may this music always bring you great pleasure. – Raelin _

Ja'Ina smiled again, though without tears this time. She was glad that Soraa had finally talked to Raelin that one evening long ago. _Yeah Raelin, your music always gave her great pleasure…_

The door opened and in walked Kurloh and Rann. They sat down with Ja'Ina and for a long time they talked about Soraa. The three friends shared many pleasant and happy memories of the young woman. She would never truly be gone…

**== The End ==**

* * *

_Author's Note:_

_I extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has been reading my story, whether you've followed it from the very beginning or dropped in somewhere in the middle. I appreciate each one of you. I also welcome any and all correspondence as I would love to hear from everyone who has anything to share about what they've read. I know the story's probably been a bit challenging to follow since it was pretty much all OC-centric without any of the canon characters we've grown to know and love over the years. But I've always felt that there are so many more interesting stories to tell out there in the vast Star Wars Galaxy, and I hope that I managed to tell a pretty good one._

_And in case you're interested in following more adventures of Ja'Ina and the rest of the crew, I am currently working on a sequel called "Darkness in the Light". Just because our heroines managed to make it to the Corporate Sector doesn't necessarily mean that all will remain safe and peaceful. :-) So keep a lookout for it. Or better yet, "Follow" me and you'll get a message when I begin posting the new story. It shouldn't be too long of a wait, but I prefer to have things mostly written out before I post. I just can't write on the fly like some people can._

_Anyway, thank you again, and please keep a lookout for "Darkness in the Light"! May the Force be with you..._


End file.
